(Photo by Brian Bahr/Getty Images)
A couple of weeks after pleading not guilty to indecent exposure, Texas A&M Aggies wide receiver Kirk Merritt has been kicked off the football team after two tutors accused him of exposing his genitals to them in a 24-hour span.
Merritt, a 20-year-old sophomore, was arrested last fall after two separate tutors reported that he exposed himself to them in separate incidents at the school.
According to one of the tutors, Merritt exposed and touched himself ‘while sitting in arm’s reach’ of her. The next day, a second tutor told cops that Merritt pulled down his shorts and grabbed himself.
However, Merritt claims that he was scratching himself due to “a bad case of jock itch.”
Merritt’s attorney, Rick Davis, gave a statement to the Houston Chronicle:
“While Kirk is very embarrassed about this situation, and has apologized to the two tutors that he offended, he did not intend to gratify anyone by exposing himself,” Davis said. “The statute Kirk has been accused of violating requires that the Defendant have an intent to arouse or gratify the sexual desire of any person and that the Defendant is reckless about whether another may be present who will be offended or alarmed by his conduct.”
While the university confirmed Wednesday that Merritt was removed from the football team, school officials did not explain the decision’s timing or say whether Merritt could rejoin the team.
