Indictment Likely For Jamar Hornsby

((HT: Jackson Clarion-Ledger/Brandt))

Ole Miss football signee Jamar Hornsby is expected to be indicted on felony aggravated assault and petit larceny charges on Friday in Oktibbeha County Circuit Court, stemming from an alleged incident in early March, according to his attorney Steve Farese.

“We’re never certain, but we are anticipating an indictment,” Farese said. “All we know for sure is that we’ll be in court Friday morning.”

Hornsby, a 22-year-old rising junior, will plead not guilty, according to the attorney. But if an indictment comes, it likely signifies that Hornsby’s future with the Ole Miss football team is on very shaky ground.

UM coach Houston Nutt said he would wait until Friday before making any decisions about Hornsby’s future with the program.

Nutt has already said that Hornsby will not be allowed to practice until his legal issues are resolved. The team’s first day of practice is Aug. 10. If there is an indictment, Farese said a resolution to the trial would probably not come until at least the end of the year.

“We would certainly file a motion to speed up the trial,” Farese said. “But it’s up to the judge.”

Hornsby played at East Mississippi Community College last fall and signed with Ole Miss in February. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound defensive back is listed as a four-star recruit (on a five-star scale) by Rivals.com and a three-star recruit by Scout.com. He is expected to help the Rebels’ secondary immediately if allowed to play.

The charges stem from an incident on March 2. Benjamin Jenkins alleges that Hornsby repeatedly hit him with brass knuckles, causing a fractured nose, busted lips, swollen jaw and scrapes and cuts at a McDonald’s in Starkville. In a separate complaint, Jenkins also alleges that Hornsby stole $6 from him during the altercation.

Hornsby has been in trouble before.

He was arrested in May 2008 while a member of the Florida football team and was convicted of four misdemeanor counts of credit card fraud in Alachua County, Fla. He used a friend’s credit card following her death in October 2007, buying almost $3,000 worth of gas.

After his arrest, Hornsby was kicked off the Florida team. As part of his punishment, he was sentenced to a year of probation in December.

When Ole Miss signed Hornsby in February, Nutt said he knew about Hornsby’s past issues, but was confident he deserved a second chance.

“We talked to everybody involved,” Nutt said. “We talked to (Florida coach) Urban Meyer. We talked to the judge. We talked to his family. We wouldn’t have signed him if we weren’t confident he would represent our program in the right way.”