Just as they are allowed to get Josh Gordon back into the mix, the New England Patriots have been dealt a different significant blow off the field. Star safety Patrick Chung finds himself in serious legal trouble after he was charged with the possession of cocaine over a month ago in late June.
Now, documents have been released showing that Chung has been indicted for the incident on Aug. 8. Chung will be due in court later this month on Aug. 28.
Here it is: the indictment against Patriots safety Patrick Chung for alleged cocaine possession. #WBZ pic.twitter.com/NAMk6f1qZ3
— Liam Martin (@LiamWBZ) August 22, 2019
The June charge reportedly stems from an incident in which authorities found cocaine at Chung’s New Hampshire home. While the substance wasn’t the reason behind authorities being called to Chung’s residence, it was found in his home upon their arrival. Following from Laconia Daily Sun’s Michael Mortensen.
“The rule of thumb is if the police are in a place where they have a right to be then anything they see is fair game,” explained Harry Starbranch, a former Deputy Strafford County Attorney, who is now a criminal defense attorney practicing in New Hampshire. “But it has to be in plain view,” he stressed in a phone interview. “They can’t go searching.”
Belknap County Attorney Andrew Livernois, whose office sought the indictment and is prosecuting the case, released a statement through the Meredith Police Department late Thursday afternoon that said, in part: “members of the Meredith, New Hampshire police department were called to Mr. Chung’s residence on a call for service. During the course of that call, the police obtained the evidence which has led to the current charges being filed. Mr. Chung was not arrested at the time. Following the police investigation, the information was referred to the Belknap County Attorney’s Office, which made the decision to indict Mr. Chung, based upon its determination that there was probable cause to believe that a crime had been committed by Mr Chung.”
For a franchise looking to make a run at a second straight Super Bowl win and their third in four years, losing someone like Patrick Chung will hurt them quite a bit. Chung was a trusty veteran presence on Bill Belichick’s defense and knew the system better than just about anybody. Now, they could have to fare without him in the regular season.
Chung’s drug possession charge is a Class B felony which means he could still serve some jail time. In fact, Chung could ultimately face up to seven years in prison.
The Pats are again expected to be Super Bowl contenders but their defense could look completely different without Chung leading the secondary. Chung has won three rings in nine years with New England and was stellar again last season, recording 84 total tackles including 52 solo.
