Seahawks’ Moffitt pleads guilty to disorderly conduct
Jun 17, 2013, 2:05 PM | Updated: Jun 18, 2013, 9:12 am
By Danny O’Neil
Seahawks guard John Moffitt pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct in Bellevue District Court last Friday, paying a fine of $1,407 and receiving a suspended sentence of 24 months in jail.
 John Moffitt |
Moffitt originally faced two misdemeanor charges, one for criminal trespassing and another for obstruction of a law enforcement officer after a series of three different incidents at Bellevue Square mall in 2012.
Those were amended to a single charge of disorderly conduct, according to the court clerk who summarized the sentencing terms from last Friday’s hearing. Moffitt will not have to serve any of the suspended sentence so long as he avoids further legal trouble.
Jon Fox, Moffitt’s attorney, said via e-mail that Moffitt had no previous legal incidents and as a result received a deferred sentence. If Moffitt complies with the court’s stipultions for two years, the verdict will be changed to not guilty and expunged from Moffitt’s record. Fox said Moffitt is happy to have the situation behind him.
It’s very unlikely Moffitt would face further discipline from the league regarding the personal-conduct policy.
The first incident occurred in January, when a member of the mall’s security staff stated he saw Moffitt urinating on the skybridge between Bellevue Square and Lincoln Square malls. Moffitt was given an order – which he did not sign – stating that he was not to enter Bellevue Square, Bellevue Place or Lincoln Square for an entire year.
In June, mall security called officers after seeing Moffitt at one of the restaurants at Lincoln Square. The security officers informed police Moffitt was last seen running away from the mall after urinating near a parked car. The officers went to a nearby apartment complex where Moffitt was said to hang out.
Moffitt was seen running away from the apartment complex, and according to the police report, the officer alleged he yelled Moffitt’s name while in full uniform, in a patrol car with emergency lights flashing. The officer stated that Moffitt looked back, but continued running.
Mall security later picked out Moffitt from a photo array.
The final incident occurred in August of 2012 and resulted in Moffitt’s arrest on a misdemeanor charge of criminal trespass. Mall security again summoned police, stating Moffitt was seated at the bar of a restaurant in Lincoln Square. Two officers responded, arresting Moffitt when they found him on the premises.
Moffitt appeared at a preliminary hearing last month before entering a guilty plea to the amended charge Friday.
