Haywood enters pre-trial diversion agreement

Michael Haywood, who was Pitt’s head football coach for two weeks in December, agreed to… Michael Haywood, who was Pitt’s head football coach for two weeks in December, agreed to undergo a psychological evaluation and complete 60 hours of community service in hopes that a judge will dismiss the domestic violence charge that led to his firing.

Prosecutors in St. Joseph County Indiana, where Haywood owns a home, accused him of domestic battery after the mother of his son told police that he put her in a chokehold on New Year’s Eve and threw her backward, according to court documents. Pitt fired Haywood shortly after, leaving the Athletic Department searching for its third head football coach in a month and sending some recruits into a panic.

Haywood’s decision to undergo an evaluation and perform community service is part of a pre-trial diversion agreement, in which someone accussed of a crime agrees to fulfill certain requirements in exchange for having his charge dismissed.

Haywood agreed to the program at a court hearing held in Indiana last Friday. During the hearing, he admitted to touching the mother of his child in a “rude, insolent or angry manner” and said she suffered an injury after falling, according court documents.

The woman consented to Haywood entering the agreement as opposed to taking the case to trial. If she hadn’t agreed, the case would have gone to trial, said Linda Scopelitis, a director of diversion programs in Indiana.

Haywood had to pay $328 to enter the pre-trial diversion program. Additionally, he will undergo an evaluation to see if he needs to enter the Batterers Intervention Program, a state program that provides counseling on domestic violence, Scopelitis said. He will also have to do 60 hours of community service. Haywood’s charge will be dismissed one year from Feb. 10 if he meets the requirements agreement.

“It’s a pretty standard agreement. There’s nothing unusual that we’re doing for Mr. Haywood that we’ve never done for other people,” Scopelitis said.

As part of Haywood’s agreement with the court, he cannot commit any criminal offense while the agreement stands. If Haywood fails to uphold the agreement, he’ll be “back in court where he started,” Scopelitis said.

His attorney, Andre Gammage noted that prosecution could then use his remarks against him, making the case more difficult for Haywood.

“I have no reason to believe he wouldn’t complete the terms,” Gammage said.

Gammage said that Haywood was “satisfied” with the agreement. “It was important for them to be able to move forward with the raising of their child,” the lawyer said.

Haywood’s battery charge would be dismissed upon fulfilling the agreement, but that doesn’t mean it would be expunged from his record. Gammage said that it’s possible that Haywood will look into expunging the charge after his agreement term ends, but he noted that expungement is difficult under Indiana law.