WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8, 2005
NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
3
Giddens incident investigated
Police continue investigation into May nightclub altercation
Kansan file photo
Junior forward J.R. Giddens talks with members of the media in the Jayhawk locker room after a disappointing loss last season.
LIZ NARTOWICZ
inartowicz@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Junior forward J.R. Giddens will miss the first term of summer school because he is recovering, at his home in Oklahoma City, from a sliced artery in his right calf, the Lawrence Journal-World reported.
Giddens received the cut during a fight in the parking lot of the Moon Bar, 821 Iowa St., early in the morning of May 19, according to Lawrence police. The police are conducting an investigation to determine the cause and the instigator of the fight, and have no comment at this time, said Sgt. Dan Ward. Lawrence Police Department.
Giddens, Creswell and the rest of the men were at the Moon Bar to celebrate the birthday of its owner, Ron Ruiz. Ruiz had no comment on the incident.
Bill Self, men's head basketball coach, has said that no decision on whether Giddens will remain on the team has been reached, but that he will be the one making the decision. Self is waiting for the police to conclude their investigation. Self could not be reached for comment yesterday because he attended a charity golf tournament. If Giddens remains on the team, he will be required to follow strict rules of behavior. Self has said.
Giddens was one of the six persons injured during the fight. He was allegedly cut by Jeremiah Creswell with a four-inch folding knife. Witnesses said Giddens, along with ten other men, attacked Creswell after the bar had closed. Witnesses have identified two of these men as C.J. Giles, sophomore center, and former KU basketball player Bryant Nash. Giles denied any involvement in the fight, but Nash admitted to punching Creswell in the face, the Lawrence Journal-World reported.
"We will have rules and things we'll continue to go over, which will not be privy to the public," Self said to the Lawrence Journal-World yesterday.