Cops search apartment of LSU’s Jefferson

Published 1:56 am Thursday, August 25, 2011

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Authorities searched LSU starting quarterback Jordan Jefferson’s apartment on Wednesday and collected a swab of his DNA in connection with a bar fight last week that injured four people.

“He gave us 100 percent cooperation,” Baton Rouge police Sgt. Don Stone said, adding that the quarterback’s attorney also showed up and that authorities didn’t ask Jefferson any questions.

“During the course of the investigation we got enough probable cause to obtain a search warrant for his home. The reason was to search for certain items that will assist in the ongoing investigation and will help either prove or disprove the allegations against Jefferson.”

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Investigators left with several brown bags of evidence, but Stone said he could not immediately discuss what items were taken from the senior quarterback’s home.

The search came a day after Jefferson and three teammates — offensive lineman Chris Davenport, linebacker Josh Johns and receiver Jarvis Landry — were interviewed by police for the first time since the fight that occurred in the parking lot of a bar were police say numerous LSU players were gathered late Thursday night.

The most seriously injured victim has three broken vertebrae, Police chief Dewayne White has said.

There have been no arrests and no charges have been filed, but White stressed that police hope to gather enough evidence to arrest whoever is responsible for the victims’ injuries.

If arrests are made, charges could range from misdemeanor simple battery to felony second-degree battery, Stone said.

While Davenport, Johns and Landry are reserves and weren’t expected to play much in the season opener, Jefferson was expected to start. If he cannot play, fellow senior Jarrett Lee likely would start behind center, with junior college transfer Zach Mettenberger next in line.

For now, however, LSU coach Les Miles isn’t ready to exclude Jefferson from the game plan, and Jefferson has been sharing first-team practice and scrimmage snaps with Lee.

Police have video from the scene but have said it does not show the fight itself.

Investigators also are still tracking down and interviewing witnesses.

White has said that most of the initial statements investigators have taken were conflicting and seemed to contain a bias in favor of either the victims or the four named players. White has said he wants investigators to find more “objective” witnesses who do not have ties to either party in the altercation.