Eastern Michigan forward Emoni Bates was arrested and charged with two felony gun charges after a traffic stop in Superior Township, Mich., on Sunday, according to Washtenaw County arrest records.
Washtenaw County deputies pulled over Bates, who this year transferred to Eastern Michigan, for failing to stop at an intersection and found a firearm during the investigation, local TV station WXYZ-7 reported. The 18-year-old Bates was charged with carrying a concealed weapon and altering ID marks, per the arrest record, and taken into custody at the Washtenaw County jail.
The 2021-22 Eastern Michigan student-athlete handbook states that any athlete “charged with a felony, or with a crime involving gambling or game fixing under Michigan law or any other jurisdictional equivalent, shall be suspended automatically from practice and playing privileges until the charges are dropped, dismissed or otherwise resolved.”
An athlete who is convicted or pleads no contest to a felony charge “shall be permanently dismissed from the team.’’ The athlete can appeal both the suspension and dismissal.
“We are aware of a situation involving men’s basketball student-athlete Emoni Bates,” Eastern Michigan said in a statement to The Athletic. “Eastern Michigan University takes all allegations of this nature very seriously. Per department policy, he has been suspended automatically from practice and playing privileges until the legal process is resolved. Because this is an on-going legal matter, the University will have no further comment at this time.”
Bates, once considered the top prospect in all of high school basketball, originally committed to Michigan State, but then reclassified from the Class of 2022 to 2021 and signed with the University of Memphis last August. He started the first seven games but was removed from the starting lineup prior to the Tigers’ game against Ole Miss in December. At the end of January, he was sidelined with a back injury and did not return to the team until the NCAA Tournament. He played just three minutes in Memphis’ first-round game against Boise State, and 12 in the loss to Gonzaga.
After the season Bates, who averaged just 9.7 points per game, entered the transfer portal. The Ypsilanti native chose to return home, to Eastern Michigan, and immediately became the highest-ranked player to join a Mid-American Conference team.
(Photo: Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)
