Dareus will enter drug rehab to avoid jail

Published 1:43 am Tuesday, July 22, 2014

PITTSFORD, N.Y. (AP) — Marcell Dareus’ attorney says the Buffalo Bills’ defensive tackle has agreed to enter an NFL substance abuse program in a bid to have felony drug charges in Alabama dismissed.

Rod Giddens wrote in an email to The Associated Press on Monday that Dareus was allowed to enter the program during a hearing at Cleburne County Court in Alabama earlier in the day. Dareus attended the hearing while being excused from training camp in suburban Rochester, New York.

Buffalo’s WKBW-TV first reported the agreement.

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Dareus, who is from Alabama, was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia after being stopped by a state trooper on May 5.

The charges will be dismissed and potentially expunged should the 2011 first-round draft pick successfully completes the program.