Pinkston 'doing the best he can' to fulfill legal obligations

CINCINNATI - Villanova coach Jay Wright said JayVaughn Pinkston "is doing the best he can" to adhere to the conditions of the program the player must conclude satisfactorily to have his record expunged in connection with a 2010 fight at an off-campus party.

But Pinkston, the Wildcats' senior forward and cocaptain, has not fulfilled the terms of a judge's order requiring 375 hours of community service, and payment of more than $11,000 in restitution and court costs, and probably won't be able to do so until after his Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition program ends in May.

The Montgomery County District Attorney's Office filed a petition last week contending that Pinkston, 23, violated the terms of his ARD sentence. But Pinkston's attorney, James Famiglio, said the filing was a necessary procedural action so prosecutors can continue to have jurisdiction over Pinkston's case after May.

A hearing in the case is scheduled for March 31.

"We're going to ask the court to give him time into next year to pay when he's employed," Famiglio said Saturday. "If it were $1,000, really there would be no excuse for him not to pay. But [$11,000] for a college kid is not realistic. He'll be employed next year whether it's in basketball or something else."

Speaking after Saturday's 78-66 win over Xavier in Cincinnati, Wright said he understood the prosecutor's filing to make sure the money is repaid and said that all concerned are following Famiglio's lead.

"He says we're going to work it out," Wright said. "The way JayVaughn is doing it is what [Famiglio] tells us to do. So we don't foresee any problem."

Pinkston said he is trying to make progress in community service and restitution "to the best of my ability."

"I haven't done anything wrong," he said. "I'm trying to fulfill all my requirements and get my ARD completed. The restitution - that's a lot of money, especially for a kid that doesn't have anything. With that and community service, with us having practice and school, it's a lot."

Wright said that as an NCAA student-athlete, Pinkston can't obtain financial help from his attorney or anyone involved with Villanova.

Pinkston was arrested and charged by Upper Merion Township police in connection with a fight at a party in November 2010, an incident that resulted in his suspension from Villanova for the entire academic year and kept him away from the team.

He was approved for the ARD program in May 2013 after being charged with one count of simple assault and two counts of harassment, and after agreeing to community service and payment of $11,276 for court costs and restitution to two alleged victims.

A report in the Times Herald in Norristown said the prosecutor's petition charged Pinkston with failing to report to probation officers and failing to complete community service and paying off what he owes. A representative of the District Attorney's Office could not be reached for comment.

Famiglio said Pinkston has not been credited with some of the time spent in community service and insisted "he did not blow it off."

As for the claim Pinkston violated probation, the attorney said: "He just didn't finish his requirement. He didn't commit a crime. He didn't break any laws. It's just administrative."