Preston Parker was found asleep behind the steering wheel of his red Dodge Charger. His car had the engine on and was stopped at the drive-thru of a McDonalds. He had a .054 blood alcohol content (the legal limit is .08) and also admitted to smoking marijuana.
One of the requirements of last year's gun and drug charges was that he undergo regular drug tests. This latest news is obviously a violation of his plea agreement and if the charges hold he is, for all intents and purposes, done at FSU.
More details following the jump...
Below is the press release from the Tallahassee Police Department:
Last night at approximately 4:42AM the Tallahassee Police Department responded to the McDonald's at 672 W. Tennessee Street in reference to a report that a male was "passed-out" behind the wheel of his car. Upon arrival, the officer observed a red Dodge Charger in the drive-thru line at the restaurant. A witnessed stated that the car had been stopped there for approximately twenty minutes. There were no other cars behind or in front of the Dodge Charger.
Once the officer approached the car he could see that the engine was running, the car was in drive and the male was asleep behind the steering wheel. The officer made several attempts to wake the driver by banging on the window. Eventually the driver woke, took his foot off the brake pedal and the car began to travel forward. The officer yelled to the driver and was finally able to get him to stop the car.
During the course of the investigation officers suspected that the driver was under the influence of alcohol. The driver agreed to conduct field sobriety exercises and at the conclusion of the investigation the driver was arrested for Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol or Drugs. Once at the Leon County Jail the driver submitted to a breath test and a urine sample. The breath test resulted in a .054 blood alcohol content. The urine sample was presumptive positive for marijuana. The driver admitted to drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana that night. The driver was charged with D.U.I. first offense. During the investigation it was determined that the arrestee is a Florida State University football player.
This is the third strike for Preston Parker. Some will remember he got caught stealing a DVD from Best Buy. He then was found with a gun and marijuana down in South Florida. Many thought his FSU career was done then. FSU, however, stuck with him but made it quite clear he was out of chances. This latest transgression is pretty much a nail in the coffin of Parker's once promising career.
The positives?
- We now have 1 more scholarship available
- We may be able to sell playing time more than ever to Debose, although he is still a longshot at best.
The negatives?
- The NCAA is watching and we believe the NCAA is still negotiating with FSU. This certainly doesn't help.
- Instead of helping with Debose, it could potentially hurt our chances with him or with any remaining prospects for that matter.
- Thankfully it is Super Bowl weekend, otherwise the press would be all over this. It is, nonetheless, a bad situation from a press standpoint.