Top basketball recruit Wall charged in break-in

RALEIGH, N.C. -- John Wall, the country's top unsigned high school recruit in basketball, has been charged with misdemeanor breaking and entering after police found him walking out of a vacant house in North Carolina.

John Wall is ranked fifth in the ESPNU 100's Class of 2009.

Wall, a 6-foot-3, 180-pound point guard ranked fifth in the ESPNU 100's Class of 2009, was cited in connection with an April 27 break-in of a Raleigh residence, the police said. Wall, a point guard at Raleigh Word of God, was voted The Associated Press men's prep basketball player of the year for North Carolina in March.

Police said an officer detained Wall, 18, after observing him leaving out the back of the home.

Two minors were also detained and charged in connection with the break-in.

Police said there was no forced entry and nothing to indicate anything was missing from the residence.

Wall has nine teams on his list of potential schools -- Florida, Baylor, Duke, Kansas, Kentucky, Memphis, Miami, North Carolina and NC State.

Frank Jackson, an assistant district attorney in Wake County, which includes Raleigh, told The Associated Press that a person convicted of such an offense could face up to 120 days in jail. But he said a first-time offender would likely have to perform community service.

A call to Wall's home in Raleigh found the phone was disconnected. His mother didn't have a listed phone number, and message to the school's athletic director wasn't immediately returned.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Full Story at ESPN.com




Some say God doesn't like homosexuals. What about thieves?

He was charged with breaking and entering, not theft. Doesn't matter if the place was abandoned. Had there been people in it, he'd have been charged with home invasion.

Given that there was no forced entry, there's really no B&E, since there was no "breaking" component to the crime. My bet is that this gets plea bargained down to misdemeanor trespassing and the kid goes on to college.

and taken to the precinct and charged with trespass...it was dropped but it was NOT FUN..had my son been black things might not have turned out so good?

in nearby neighborhoods..and my son did one under construction..and was charged with trespass..the charge was dropped...kids do shit like that...from curiosity..and pretending...get over yourself..B&E is a serious charge and should not be entered into just because those entering a house are perhaps black?

on edit: hell we even got inside a shop and cut the hell out of ourselves playing with saws...my parents called the police that we were missing and my cousins ended up at the hospital for stiches...no charges to us...but to the people who left the door open? they were black in VA...maybe they were charged..though I think my father would have fought those charges as he owned a cleaner and most of the people who worked for him lived in that community.

but if nothing was missing and there was no forced entry, where was the crime? surely this was a friend's house or something??

I myself entered many abandoned homes..we called them 'haunted homes'.and scared ourselves while perusing them...my son did the same with one under construction and got charged with trespass...how could I say anything to him, when I had done the same when I was a kid?

but B+E???

to the prosecutor...my son is white.

plenty of guys with worse records are already pulling in big salaries.

You know athletes who get into trouble doing stupid things like this baffles me. You would think with so much to look forward to, and so much media attention they would be cognizant of what they do, and who they hang out with.

http://kjfreeman98.sports.officelive.com/default.asp">Jason

Welcome to DU! :hi:

They're kids. I did plenty of stupid things when I was young.

Vacant building? Not a big deal.

I feel for this kid, his recruitment being followed nationally, then he does something that is silly and has to put up with headlines instead of just the scolding from parents most kids would endure.

(Of course I think it would do the young man good to go live in a nice quiet town like Lexington, Ky for a year or so, he would definitely be welcome here ;-))

and the glass house brigade comes to toss stones because the kid has athletic talent.

If they wanted to. Seems ridiculous to charge him with a crime.