A former Ohio State football player pleaded guilty yesterday to drug charges and faces up to one year in prison.
Marco Cooper, 20, appeared before Judge Michael H. Watson with his attorney, Bill Meeks, in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas and pleaded guilty to one count of crack cocaine possession, a felony in the fifth degree. Cooper appeared in court handcuffed and in his prison clothes. He has been imprisoned since his Dec. 16 arrest.
The former OSU linebacker was pulled over Dec. 16 near Chittenden Avenue and Summit Street. According to Columbus Division of Police reports, the arresting officer found several pieces of crack cocaine in a stocking cap. Later, at the police station, 0.1 gram of crack cocaine was found in Cooper’s jacket pocket.
In court, Cooper agreed with the facts laid out in the police report.
As Watson went over various rights available to Cooper, he simply replied with “Yes, sir” and “No, sir” responses.
Cooper is no stranger to Watson’s court. In November, he was sentenced to five years probation and 100 hours community service for drug and weapon charges stemming from an April arrest following the Scarlet and Gray spring game. Following the intrasquad game Cooper was pulled over at the corner of Woody Hayes and Cannon drives, and a subsequent search of the vehicle turned up Ecstasy, a Glock 19 9-mm handgun, bullets and a marijuana pipe.
Watson chastised Cooper for violating his parole.
“Marco, you seem to have made a lot of bad decisions in a short amount of time,” he said. “Your team goes on to win the national championship, and here you stand.”
Cooper now faces up to one year in prison and a $2,500 fine. His sentencing is slated for Feb. 19 at 9 a.m. in courtroom 7B.
