Kicker Cody Journell released from jail after making bond
Our crime and cops reporter from the New River Valley Bureau, Lerone Graham, reports that Hokies kicker Cody Journell has been released from Montgomery County jail after being granted a $100,000 secured bond. The story:
Virginia Tech football kicker Cody Journell is no longer in jail, after making bond this morning.
Journell and his co-defendants Matthew Brady and Matthew Dunton were denied bond last week after being arraigned on charges of entering a house with the intent to commit a felony.
According to the Montgomery County Circuit Court Clerk’s office, Journell was granted a $100,000 secured bond. Brady and Dunton were also in court but withdrew their bond appeal as they’re seeking new lawyers, according to the court clerk’s office.
The charges stem from an alleged incident in which the three showed up at the house of Virginia Tech basketball player Dorenzo Hudson and his roommate Sean Allen due to marijuana that they said Allen stole from Dunton.
All three are set to appear in court for a preliminary hearing Feb. 23.
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The Hokies arrived in New Orleans this morning. Journell, obviously, was not with the team. We’ve received no official comment from Frank Beamer about the issue.
December 28, 2011 - 11:58 AM
It was a bb gun, no one was punched, & no house was ransacked!
And that’s on Cody’s side. The guys that did punch & pursue are all members “in good standing” (as Seth put it). These are 5 young men who should be charged with stupidity & misdemeanor assault. Why is this being treated as if they were mass murders? $100,000 bail? I’ll admit I’m no expert on this stuff, but do they really expect Cody to skip the country, or go underground?
Let the other two out of jail as well, fine them, give them a bunch of hours of community service, & I’ll bet you never see any of the three back in court again!
I cannot understand AD Weaver’s incredible lack of concern, interest and awareness of the situation with Hudson. The guy’s roomie is apparently a drug dealer. A drug deal goes sour, 3 guys break into their apartment and Hudson and the dealer later go out and hunt these guys down and an altercation ensues and that is not a potential problem in Weaver’s eyes? Six days after starters on his football and basketball teams get involved in a highly publicized altercation with one another over an “alleged” drug deal and he claims to have no knowledge of the altercation? For him to say: “Dorenzo was not involved or charged with anything, so there was no reason for me or the athletics department to take any action against him,” is incredibly myopic and shows a very nonchalant attitude towards maintaining discipline. Since when does VT or any school rely on the police alone to inquire into misconduct of their athletes? For the sake of argument, let’s say Hudson’s roomie was not a drug dealer. Is Weaver giving his stamp of approval to Hudson’s vigilante code of enforcement? There seem to be too many questions here for the AD’s rose colored glasses response, or lack of response. VT should demand more from their AD than a shrug of the shoulders and a business as usual reaction. This is serious stuff.
I agree with Scott, it is another case of Weaver spinning the story and doubletalk in such a way as to muddle the topic so he does not have to respond further. Weaver is all dollars and cents !!! He needs to retire, he does not even work a full day anymore, his health is bad and he should retire and enjoy life with his family.
$100,000 bond! I would have made him sit in jail and think long and hard about why he’s there.
There is far too many holes in the police story and what is being reported in the news.
It is alleged that Journell and the others showed up to Hudson’s door with a pizza box, alleged that two men burst from the bush and enter the apartment, and then alleged one of them were brandishing a firearm, which was reported to be an airsoft pistol (which, I have seen before, looks like a real gun). After discovering that Hudson’s roommate wasn’t home, it was alleged later that night, the duo went after the threesome and gave them a beating. Allegedly, of course. Did I miss something here? One of them, sniffling, said that Hudson’s roommate stole his pot. Seriously? You went after someone for allegedly stealing your bag of grass? Forgive me for a laugh.
The police must have investigate to find out why the assault happened in the first place and traced the stories back to the apartment. It still doesn’t answer the question of why in the world Journell would be involved in something like that in the first place.
The AD should have taken the initiative and suspended Hudson and cite “on going investigation” into this “altercation” that took place in Blacksburg. At least, in the eyes of common sensed citizens, it would look like Weaver was being serious, but now, he looks like a jackass. Sorry, Weaver, just because you, Greenberg, and Beamer all smoke the same peace pipe doesn’t exempt you from responsibilities.
Yet another embarrassment for the people of Giles County.
Must be more to the story. Wouldn’t the 2 guys Hudson and Allen “allegedly” beat up have the option of pressing charges against them anyway?
Jim Weaver could have said a lot of dumb things, but I can’t imagine anything worse than what he did say. I don’t believe for a second that he didn’t know Dorenzo Hudson was somehow tied into all this, but even if he didn’t, he does now. So why not do something? A very bad precedent is being made here, in my opinion, and one that will later become very regretful. At the end of the day, he is the AD, Greenberg, Beamer, and whomever are coaches — they don’t need the police to make a decision about a player.
Yes, Weaver has been at Tech long enough and he should retire to care for his health.
Tech needs a new person with some new ideas to lead the program.
hearing the state police are now involved and this issue maybe part of a larger issue. this one may take a while to play out if that’s correct.
Same ol’ Hokies. If a player is in trouble but is capable of getting VT a win, they wont feel any penalty until the public uproar gets too much to handle. (Marcus Vick)
Sadly, this is not news, nor does it deserve any sort of coverage. Kick those that are on the team off and be done with it. Technically they should almost be tossed from the school. A kicker on a college team = just another student.
I think this is NUTZ, You have five kids who probably shouldn’t be at Tech anyway being dragged through the paper. Marajuana (sp) is still illegal isn’t it. Who pressed charges on who? “You see officer this guy came in and stole my child porn and I want him arrested. Are you kidding me… I think the police should have asked more quetions. The solution would have been to have them all hold hands in a circle for one hour and talk about their feelings.
FIZ, I know enough about police work to know that they have surely asked a lot of questions but they don’t give all of that information to the media, nor should they. They have to protect the integrity of their investigation, which I’m sure is still ongoing. The facts will come out at trial.
Jeffrey, do you not feel that Journell is “feeling any penalty”? Suspended from the team and the university, sat in jail over Christmas. Has embarassed himself and his family and has had his picture on the front page of many newspapers wearing handcuffs. That’s a lot of penalty already and he hasn’t even gone to trial yet.
Clearly, these three have all made some bad decisions, but it IS relevant that they showed up with an empty pizza box and a bb gun. They don’t sound like hardened criminals, but more like youths who made a terribly bad decision that will cost them some opportunities.
Hopefully Journell will learn a lesson from this, and his decision-making process will improve.
Call a spade a spade: armed robbery and assault are just that: ARMED ROBBERY AND ASSAULT! Thank goodness the athletes involved didn’t pull a “Penn State” and call Frank Beamer instead of calling the law. Now – THAT would have been a story! Whether retribution, debt collection, or a prank – those suspects with the gun (air gun, BB gun, or Uzi – it LOOKED like a deadly weapon) and entering someone else’s abode to cause harm were arrested. Everything else is hearsay in the eyes of the law.