University of Iowa basketball Pierre Pierce won’t spend any time in jail, and the Hawkeye sophomore can still play next year. A plea bargain’s traded a third-degree sexual-assault charge for one of sexual assault causing injury, a serious misdemeanor. All sides agreed to a deferred judgment, which means community service, counseling and probation for pierce, but no jail time. Another part of the agreement will require Pierce to take a red-shirt year with the Hawkeye basketball team — he can practice, but not play for the Hawkeyes until next season. One mediator who helped put together the plea bargain says Pierce personally apologized to his victim and admitted he engaged in inappropriate sexual contact with a fellow student on September 7th. The still-unidentified victim apparently approved of the plea-bargain, in part to maintain her privacy. The mediator says no civil lawsuit is under consideration in the Pierce case.
