Ohio State wide receiver C.J. Saunders was arrested for a violation of curfew following a protest in Columbus near Ohio State's campus on Monday night.
Saunders posted bond and was released from the Franklin County Jail on Tuesday morning. He is scheduled to be arraigned on a misdemeanor charge of violating curfew on Thursday morning.
According to the arrest report obtained by Eleven Warriors, Saunders was walking from North High Street on West Northwood Avenue at approximately 10:45 p.m. when he was detained by a Columbus Police officer enforcing the city-wide curfew. A 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew has been in place in Columbus since Saturday in response to daily protests that have taken place in the city since last week's killing of George Floyd.
“Officers had just dispersed a crowd in violation of the curfew,” per the arrest report.
According to The Lantern, Columbus Police broke up a peaceful protest “less than 25 minutes into the citywide curfew when police used pepper spray to clear protestors out of the intersection at Lane Avenue and North High Street” on Monday night.
The arrest report did not specify whether Saunders was participating in the protest, but just one day later, Saunders spoke at another demonstration on campus after student-athletes kneeled for nine minutes in honor of Floyd.
This is all of us against racism. This is all of us on the same team. -C.J. Saunders said at #kneelfornine pic.twitter.com/NpcgR7Llj4
— Keaton Maisano (@002kfm) June 2, 2020
Saunders, a sixth-year senior who is still awaiting word from the NCAA on whether he will receive an additional year of eligibility, is a former walk-on who was placed on scholarship in 2018. He was a team captain last season, is regarded as one of the team's top leaders and was one of a multitude of players who participated in a #BlackLivesMatter video calling for change that was shared on the Ohio State football team's social media accounts on Monday.
An Ohio State spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
