Alabama man charged with sexual battery and obscenity

Celebrating Alabama’s BCS Championship win may have made one man cross the line when he was charged this week in connection with abusing an unconscious Louisiana State University fan. The man was videotaped simulating a sex act on the unconscious fan and was charged with sexual battery and obscenity.

The man, 32, of Smiths Stations, Alabama, was videotaped January 9 at a restaurant on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Little did he know that the videotape would go viral on the internet and that he would become famous for all of the wrong reasons.

LSU and Alabama University campus police helped investigators gather evidence needed to get a warrant for the man’s arrest.

Adding a twist to this case is that the defendant is a second cousin to the Russell County, Alabama, sheriff. When the sheriff found out about the allegation, he didn’t want anyone to think that he was treating this case differently, just because he was dealing with a family member. The sheriff, for his part, has not seen the video or asked the defendant about it. Rather, he has remained professional and recommended that the defendant turn himself in.

Being accused of a sex crime can have potential penalties that are severe and could include prison time or the possibility of being listed in the sex offender registry. As this case reminds us, even though charges like this could affect the defendant’s life forever, he still has options that only an experienced criminal attorney can navigate for him.

Source: Associated Press, “Police Arrest Ala. Man in Post-BCS Video,” Janet McConnaughey, Jan. 20, 2012