Judge grants hearing for Solich DUI
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Ohio University football coach Frank Solich is headed to court after a judge issued a written order Friday for an evidentiary hearing to determine whether or not Solich will be allowed to withdraw his no contest plea for his Nov. 26, 2005 drunken driving arrest, Sporting News has learned. After reviewing a motion filed by Solich’s attorney, Samuel Shamansky, Athens Municipal Court judge William Grim issued his order for a hearing. The judge had a choice of deciding whether to grant the motion based on the written documents or to order an evidentiary hearing. “Witnesses are produced, evidence is entered into record, and it’s a full-blown hearing,” Shamansky said. Grim, reached at his home Friday afternoon, confirmed over the phone his order for a hearing. No date is scheduled for the hearing. A date agreeable to the prosecution, defense and the court will be chosen. Solich is attempting to withdraw his no contest plea, originally entered on Nov. 28, 2005, based on a hair test analysis showing the presence of gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB), also known as the date rape drug. The memorandum of Shamansky’s motion, which was faxed to Grim on Wednesday, indicates Solich was “not aware of ingesting GHB (or any other drugs of abuse, for that matter), and he would not have pled no contest to OVI if he had been aware of the information.” Solich was ordered to pay a $600 fine and complete a 30-day jail term. The jail sentence was suspended and replaced with a two-year period of probation. He also was required to complete a certified driver intervention program. If Grim finds in favor of Solich in the evidentiary hearing, he will be allowed to withdraw his no contest plea for the DUI arrest and take the matter to trial. |