ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — A lawyer for fired University of Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore declared his innocence Thursday and said charges of home invasion and stalking were based on an effort by a staff member to get a financial windfall from the school's “deep pockets."
In a court filing, defense attorney Ellen Michaels responded to allegations that shocked college football in December. It also signals that Moore, who was fired for a relationship
with the staffer and arrested hours later, is fighting the charges and wants the case dismissed.
“This Court is not confronted with a close call or a technical defect,” Michaels wrote. “It is confronted with a prosecution that never should have begun.”
Moore was abruptly fired on Dec. 10 for having an inappropriate relationship and for lying during the university's investigation, his dismissal letter states.
Authorities say Moore later that day entered the woman’s apartment, blamed her for the firing and grabbed butter knives and kitchen scissors while threatening to kill himself.
A prosecutor quoted Moore as telling the woman, “My blood is on your hands.”
Moore, 39, has pleaded not guilty to charges of felony home invasion, stalking and illegal entry.
Michaels said the warrant to arrest Moore was deeply flawed because police wrongly informed a magistrate that Moore had been stalking the woman for months and was dangerous.
Michaels said police relied on misinformation from the woman's personal lawyer, Heidi Sharp, as it investigated what happened. Michaels doesn't dispute that Moore turned up at the woman's apartment, but she claims there's no evidence that she had told him to stay away.
“A magistrate must be given a fair and accurate picture. When the picture is distorted, the warrant cannot stand,” Michaels wrote.
She accused Sharp of giving information to police to “villainize Mr. Moore and maximize the chances of obtaining a large settlement from the deep pockets of the University of Michigan.”
A message seeking comment from Sharp was not immediately returned.
Earlier Thursday, a judge held a hearing to get an update on the case. Michaels disclosed that she had filed the request to quash the arrest and would argue it at a future date.
Washtenaw County assistant prosecutor Kati Rezmierski said she had just received the filing. The next hearing was set for Feb. 17.
Moore arrived at the courthouse with his wife, Kelli and waited in an adjacent courtroom for his case to be called. He declined to comment but stood nearby when Michaels briefly spoke to reporters and said he's innocent.
Moore coached the Wolverines for two seasons as the successor to Jim Harbaugh, who won a national championship before quitting to become coach of the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers.
Kyle Whittingham, who coached Utah for two decades, is the new Michigan coach.
