Oregon kicker Robert Beard was allegedly beaten unconscious by Kirby Hawkins and Maurice Peterson on Jan. 24, at about 12:30 a.m.
When people heard about this, many felt terrible for Beard; he was portrayed by the police reports and the media to be the innocent victim who was just trying to help fellow teammate Mike Bowlin, while Peterson and Hawkins were instantly villainized. We were led to believe that they were thugs and shady characters, vicious and violent.
Register-Guard reporter Mark Baker was so desperate to paint a negative image of Hawkins that he went to the student’s Facebook profile for anything that made him seem like he was a delinquent. In “Second LCC student arrested in beating,” (The Register-Guard, Jan. 29) Baker informed us that on Facebook, Hawkins lists his interests as “school, basketball and mary jane.” Baker wanted Hawkins to be a despicable person in our eyes. I don’t know what town he lives in, but I can find at least 500 people here who can tell you that their interests are school, basketball and mary jane.
The media were like a flock of biased vultures looking for anything that could add into the predetermined narrative they had crafted.
But they were all wrong.
We have found out since then that Beard was running amuck that night; he was kicked out of several campus-area parties, involved in several confrontations and contained a blood alcohol level of almost .20. He was out of control, and his lack of awareness that night was what began the brawl where he was beaten unconscious.
Beard pushed a 90-pound woman to the ground, and Hawkins and Peterson attacked him in defense of her. Yes, they did go too far, and yes, I do acknowledge that what they did is still a crime, but they were not thugs, criminals, or bandits looking for trouble — they were coming to the aid of a girl who Hawkins said is like a sister to him.
“None of that would have happened if they weren’t doing what they were doing,” Hawkins said.
Kirby Hawkins and I both went to Parkrose High School in Portland. He is one of the best athletes Parkrose has seen; he averaged 15.5 points per game his junior year, and dropped 26 points on our conference rival, St. Helens, in a memorable 2007-08 victory. He underwent some academic troubles his senior year, though, and ended up having to leave Parkrose. He eventually earned his GED through a program at Mt. Hood Community College.
Kirby came to Lane Community College for school and basketball, and though he had struggled with academics all throughout high school, his grades were improving.
Kirby and I weren’t best friends or anything throughout high school, but I knew him well enough to know that he was wasn’t a horrible person. Hawkins did have a bit of an attitude, and he would back talk coaches here and there, but he was never involved in any fights during high school. Before this incident, he had a clean criminal record.
He was on the right track, until the unfortunate incidents that occurred on the 24th, initiated by the shoving of a woman by Beard (who was so drunk he doesn’t even remember shoving her to the floor), he spent a month lodged in Lane County Jail, ruining his winter term. Hawkins acknowledges this as a serious wake-up call for him, but he also sees how it affected Eugene as a whole.
“A lot of people learned something from this,” Hawkins said.
We learned that our romantic vision of the football players needs to be put in check; that violence is a problem around campus; and that journalists cannot come into stories with preconceived narratives.
Beard pleaded guilty Friday in Lane County Circuit Court to a misdemeanor charge of physical harassment for shoving the woman involved to the ground.
Hawkins and Peterson were initially charged with second-degree assault (a Measure 11 offense with a minimum sentence of more than five years), but their charges were reduced to third-degree assault. He will have to help pay for Beard’s medical fees (approximately $40,000), serve 18 months probation and perform 100 hours of community service. Both have already spent time in jail.
Hawkins plans on transferring to Clackamas Community College, where he will continue to play basketball and attend classes.
He said he would continue to do what he was doing while he was attending Lane Community College:
“I don’t have anything to change … It’s not like I was a bad person before.”
[email protected]