Grand jury declines to indict UK players Barker, Baker, Dubose over Richmond bar fight

A Madison County grand jury did not indict three University of Kentucky football players Wednesday in a Richmond bar fight that injured Eastern Kentucky University football player Colton Scurry, according to a statement from the grand jury.

"Having heard testimony from witnesses and having considered the evidence, it is the decision of the Madison County grand jury to not indict anyone," the statement said.

Commonwealth's Attorney David Smith would not speculate on the grand jury's decision. Spokesmen for both the University of Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky University each said there would be no comment from his school. There also was no immediate comment from Jeff Scurry, father of Colton Scurry.

Richmond police interviewed UK quarterback Drew Barker, wide receiver Dorian Baker and defensive tackle Tymere Dubose about the Jan. 25 fight at Jerzee's Cocktail Lounge & Dance Club on Richmond's Main Street. Scurry, 20, an offensive lineman, suffered a broken nose and facial fractures.

The grand jury heard evidence March 25 but didn't return a decision until Wednesday. The grand jury did not indict Scurry, either.

In an interview with police, Scurry said he lost consciousness at one point during the fight, which happened at 12:30 a.m. After the fight, he told police he tried to walk back to the EKU campus accompanied by two women who tried to help him.

Eventually an ambulance was summoned, and Scurry was taken to Baptist Health Richmond hospital.

Scurry told police he suffered cuts under his right eye, above his left eye, and on his head. The head wounds required stitches or staples.

Later that morning, shortly before 3 a.m., a fight was reported at EKU's Telford Hall between Barker and Patrick Graffree, an EKU defensive lineman who had transferred from UK.

The grand jury considered the Telford Hall fight but chose not to indict anyone in that case either, Smith and Richmond police said.

The bar fight also raises questions about Jerzee's. Scurry was 20 at the time of the fight, and Richmond's ordinance prohibits admittance to a bar unless a person is 21 or older. However, if there is a "prebooked concert," minors can be on the premises for that performance. They must leave when it's over. House bands, disc jockeys and karaoke are not considered prebooked concerts.

Smith said it was his understanding from Richmond police that there was an investigation into underage patrons being served at Jerzee's.

This was not the first brush with the law for the UK players. Barker, Baker, Dubose and running back Stanley "Boom" Williams were charged last year with disorderly conduct for shooting pellet guns on the UK campus.

The players admitted to police that on Sept. 28 they and others were playing a game of "manhunt," in which they would chase and then shoot one another with airsoft guns that shoot small pellets.

UK officials issued a campus alert after reports of shots fired in the Kirwan-Blanding area. UK police later recovered four airsoft guns.

The four players were suspended from the Oct. 4 game against South Carolina.

They also completed community service through a pretrial diversion program. Diversion is typically an option for first-time offenders. In exchange for completion of community service, payment of a diversion fee and other terms, a defendant can have charges dismissed and even expunged. If the defendant does not complete diversion, he returns to court for sentencing.

Records for the four UK players appear to have been expunged from Fayette District Court. A keyword search March 25 for each player's name resulted in a "no records found" response on district court computers that had pulled up summaries of those records in early February.

In an interview Wednesday before the grand jury decision was announced, UK football coach Mark Stoops said he had challenged Barker to make better decisions.

"We sat down and talked quite a bit," Stoops said. "I've said it before: He's a good kid that made some mistakes, and he's got to go out there and be consistent on the field and off the field. He knows that."

This story was originally published April 8, 2015 at 4:35 PM with the headline "Grand jury declines to indict UK players Barker, Baker, Dubose over Richmond bar fight."