University of Texas redshirt junior Ryan Harty has received a deferred adjudication for a trespassing arrest that occurred in 2017, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.
Harty allegedly entered a woman’s home while shirtless in Austin in 2017, and she ran out the back door and called the police. When the police arrived and confronted him, he tried to run, and they used a taser to subdue him.
Harty was under the influence of a hallucinogenic substance, a friend who had been looking for him at the time of the trespassing told police.
Harty was charged with a Class A misdemeanor, according to the AP report. A Travis Country judge ordered him to perform 50 hours of community service, undergo random drug testing, and pay a $200 fine. As part of the terms, if he maintains good behavior for 14 months, the charge will be dismissed.
A ‘deferred adjudication’ is a form of plea deal in which a defendant pleads “guilty” or “no contest” to criminal charges in exchange for meeting certain requirements (like community service) proposed by the court within a given period of time, and upon completion of the requirements, the defendant avoids a formal conviction on their record or can have their case dismissed (as in Harty’s case).
Texas’ athletic department told SwimSwam it did not know about the arrest until Wednesday: “We just became aware of the situation involving our swimmer Ryan Harty with news of his Wednesday court case. Now that we have been informed, we are gathering facts, reviewing the situation and determining any action that will be taken.”
Harty’s attorney Bruce Fox told the AP it was “a one-time incident,” and that Harty’s criminal record is otherwise clean.
Harty competed for the second-place Longhorns at last week’s 2019 Men’s Division I NCAA Championships. He swam the 200 IM, placing 16th in finals; 100 back, where he was fifth; 200 back, taking ninth; and 200 medley relay, where the team took fourth. Harty is a multi-time Big 12 champion but sat out the 2016-2017 season after fracturing his arm in multiple places, which required surgery.
This story was updated April 4, 2019, to include the school’s statement.
By the way, here is the website of the lawyer that Harty used.. http://www.brucesfox.com/
Draw your own conclusions from that….
pa pa pa pa pa pa pow
i guess many, maybe most people have never done hallucinogenic substances, so its hard to judge someone thats in a state you dont understand/know.
thats not an excuse or anything for breaking in, but i would imagine he was just very confused.
a bit off-topic but, i once read another story on reddit i think, where some stoned/drunk dude just walked into someone elses house thinking it was his. argueing with the acutal owner whose place it would be for like an hour. then they just let him sleep there and the next morning the guy was very confused to wake up in a strangers house. pretty hilarious actually. so if he’d broken into a guys house we might… Read more »
This is starting to sound more and more like the Tiger Woods situation from a few years ago.
Ummm In what way is this similar to Tiger Woods?
On drugs from a surgery that they “didnt know” could cause them to behave in a certain way….Also, somehow they both took them and were not under enough supervision to be kept in their house. At least Harty didn’t go Driving like Woods did… but still.
My first reply was deleted, but I was referring to his DUI not the infamous club car window bashing thanksgiving night. they were both taking meds that apparently altered their state of mind, and neither one had anyone there to take care of them and make sure they didn’t do anything stupid, like drive a car or walk half naked in a girls house…
That’s why it’s best to have someone with you who is not on hallucinogens. So then you don’t do dumb stuff like enter a woman’s home shirtless.
A 20-something acquaintance of mine did something quite similar it was on the beach he entered someone’s home definitely shirtless opened up the fridge and made a sandwich. we thought it was pretty funny at the time, so I seriously can’t believe how this is getting blown out of proportion. yes he was trespassing but no one got hurt no one was assaulted in anyway. If part of the story was that he went into the girls bedroom and got physical in anyway I would feel completely different about it. It was wrong what he did but certainly not deserving of some of these comments.
I think the “hallucinogenic drugs” part is what’s concerning. Maybe swimming doesn’t deserve the squeeky-clean image that we all try to force down everyone’s throats all the time.
Nope. Wrong. Entering a residence (aka house) without permission is trespassing at best and attempted robbery/ breaking and entering in other terms… and the excuse that you are on drugs is NOT… I repeat, is NOT acceptable. This is not the filming of “Old School 2” or “The Hangover 5″…. That is an illegal offense and do not try to play it off as something that is “funny”… This will lead down a dangerous road that no one wants to travel…. someone could break into your house, and as soon as they realize someone is home, they just slap some bologna between two couch cushions and say they were trying to make a sandwich, then act dumb/drunk/high and walk out… Read more »
Looks to me like he got his act together after a tough year and came back better. Supported by his sport, team and people who care for him, he’s back on track. Decision rendered, progress made…..
I hope you are right. I really do. But getting that second chance is exactly the definition of what I have been saying. If he were someone else, he might not have been given that second chance. I hope he makes the most of it and helps others learn from his mistakes.
How about we respect the privacy of the family and not rush to judge? Just a mom’s perspective.
I AGREE
Nope. Sorry Mom, you lose that when your son signs on that dotted line to become a scholarship athlete at a big time D1 program. Is it unfair? Maybe. Was it known ahead of time? Yes. By the way, his mom was his swim coach in high school and had a hand in his schooling as he was “home schooled”….
None of us were there don’t make assumptions. Mistakes happen, allow him to accept his punishment, hold himself accountable and better himself going forward.
Why doesn’t to college take away his scholarship money and kick him off the team. D1 athletes get away with the most dispicable, criminal behavior and face no concequences academically or athletically. This is wrong and send a troubling message about athletic privilege. D1 athletes begin to feel untouchable. Once they are out of college the workforce will not be so forgiving. These colleges set student athletes up for continued failure while in college and upon graduation. The D1 athletic experience is a sham on so many levels.
A lot of the time it’s not the college but the coaches that decide if an athlete stays on the team after certain “events”. That being said, my college coach (and most others) would have kicked him off the team as it doesn’t represent the values of the team or institution he is a part of
D1 college athletes are also in the spotlight at all times, so any mistakes made inevitably get much more press and attention than mistakes made by “regular” college students. Yes, this is a responsibility college athletes accept the day they commit to a school. However, I am not sure it’s fair to single out D1 college athleted as getting away with the “most discpicable, criminal behavior,” because often it just appears that way due to the press it gets. Tha fact of the matter is there are journalists who sit around and wait for a college athlete to mess up, so that they can write about it. Once that is written and published, and especially if it’s online, that headline… Read more »
So many kids would love to have your worst times. Please recover from this and don’t give up your future. These things are your choice, your life, but your choices affect everyone who loves you and admires you. Hoping for the best!