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Maryland’s Dontay Joyner could make season debut vs. Ohio State after offseason arrest
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- Maryland’s Dontay Joyner could make season debut vs. Ohio State after offseason arrest
Maryland defensive back Dontay Joyner could be nearing his return.
Joyner is listed as questionable for Saturday's game against No. 5 Ohio State, marking the first time this season he has avoided an "out" designation on Maryland's Wednesday availability report. Big Ten teams are required to issue availability reports on the three days before each conference game and again on game day.
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The senior cornerback has missed the Terps' first five games after an offseason arrest briefly resulted in his dismissal from the program. Whether Joyner actually takes the field against the Buckeyes remains to be seen, but the change in his status marks the latest step in an unusual path back to Maryland's secondary less than four months after he spent 27 days in jail and less than three months after coach Michael Locksley said the Terps would help him find a "fresh start" elsewhere .
Joyner rejoined the program in early September but was permitted only to practice. At the time, a Maryland spokesperson said Joyner "will not participate in game action until further notice."
Until this week, Maryland had listed him as out on each of its availability reports.
Joyner was arrested June 11 in Harford County after his then-girlfriend contacted police during an argument over their breakup. Court documents previously obtained by The Sun said Joyner called her more than 90 times in the days leading to his arrest and sent text messages in which he threatened to shoot her.
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He pleaded guilty to five misdemeanors, including telephone misuse and four counts of violating a pretrial release condition after making calls from jail. He was sentenced to three years in jail with all but the 27 days he had already served suspended and placed on three years of supervised probation.
His legal case is not finished.
Joyner is scheduled to return to Harford County District Court on Oct. 14, when Judge Kerwin A. Miller will consider a request to modify his sentence and grant him probation before judgment, commonly known as PBJ, which would strike the guilty finding and place him on probation without entering a criminal conviction.
Douglas Gansler, Maryland's former attorney general and Joyner's attorney, has sharply criticized how Harford County prosecutors handled the case, accusing the State's Attorney's Office of overcharging and over-incarcerating Joyner and arguing that his 27-day detention amounted to a civil rights violation.
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"It's clearly a prima facie — on its face — civil rights violation," Gansler told The Sun.
Gansler said the defense does not currently plan to pursue civil litigation, but argued that Joyner's detention on misdemeanor charges was extraordinary.
In a court filing, Gansler wrote that Joyner had no prior criminal history and alleged that he was treated differently because of his profile as a Maryland football player and potential NFL prospect. The filing said Harford County State's Attorney Alison Healey personally handled the case despite having assistant prosecutors in her office.
Gansler reiterated that criticism in an interview with The Sun.
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"She herself handled the misuse of telephone misdemeanor case and showed up in court and argued it," he said.
The defense has also made a more pointed allegation about Healey's interactions with Joyner's former girlfriend.
In the motion, Gansler accused Healey of repeatedly contacting the woman and telling her that Joyner had called other women while he was incarcerated, arguing that those conversations could have encouraged her to contact Joyner despite a no-contact order.
Asked what supported that allegation, Gansler said Joyner's former girlfriend had told the defense about the conversations.
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"You don't put something in a memorandum to a court, as an officer of the court, without the basis for it," Gansler said. "She, his girlfriend, got called by the state's attorney repeatedly, and she told us about it."
Healey did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Sun on Wednesday.
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Locksley said last month that Joyner's path back began when he invited the defensive back to speak to the team during preseason camp about his mistakes. Afterward, Locksley said, three senior players and members of Maryland's leadership council asked that Joyner be allowed to return.
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Locksley then took that request to athletic director Jim Smith and other university officials.
"That wasn't a Coach Locks decision," Locksley said in September. "I take credit in that I could have shut it down."
Joyner started every game last season and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten recognition after recording 40 tackles, two interceptions and a team-high eight pass breakups.
Now, after being ruled out for Maryland's first five games, Joyner has a chance to make his season debut against Ohio State.
Have a news tip? Contact Michael Howes at mhowes@baltsun.com , 410-332-6200 and x.com/Mikephowes .
