Ex-Michigan coach Sherrone Moore gets probation for confrontation with woman who disclosed affair
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Former Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore was placed on probation Tuesday for 18 months for a confrontation with his executive assistant soon after he was fired for having an inappropriate relationship with her.
Moore was facing a possible sentence of up to six months in jail after pleading no contest to trespassing and malicious use of a telecom device. But Judge J. Cedric Simpson ordered no time in custody.
He said jail wasn't warranted, though he warned Moore that “all bets are off” if he violates probation.
Moore, 40, was fired on Dec. 10 after leading the Wolverines for two seasons, following Jim Harbaugh’s move to the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers. It was a stunning dismissal at one of college football’s most prestigious programs.
Moore was accused that same day of confronting Paige Shiver, with whom he had been having an affair, and blaming her for his firing, even threatening to kill himself with butter knives and kitchen scissors in her apartment. Authorities said she had ended the affair and spoken to school officials about it.
By ordering probation, “I would let Ms. Shiver know that this court is not by any means lessening the impact of those events,” the judge said.
“Frankly, Mr. Moore, you had no right to do what you did,” he added. “I know that she was placed in fear. It was a traumatic experience that day for you. It was certainly a traumatic experience for her. But you had no right to spread your pain to her.”
Shiver did not attend the hearing but released a statement, saying the sentence “does not reflect the harm done to me.”
“He broke into my apartment, crying, yelling, enraged, and came at me with knives. I was threatened, and I feared for my life,” she said.
Moore was initially charged with felony home invasion, stalking and illegal entry. But Washtenaw County prosecutors agreed to a deal in which he pleaded no contest to two other misdemeanors.
Moore spoke briefly in court. He thanked his wife, Kelli, for standing by him but did not say anything about Shiver.
The judge, too, praised Kelli Moore. Simpson said he was especially moved by a letter she wrote in support of her husband. He also noted that she was concerned about Moore's mental health when she calmly called police on the day of the incident in search of him.
“The person, quite frankly Mr. Moore, that is saving you from the full wrath of this court is the one you betrayed,” Simpson said. “I don't know where your wife Kelli finds her strength.”
The judge also cited the “courage” of prosecutors “in doing what is right” by backing off from the initial charges.
"When the charges were filed they were appropriate," Simpson said. "But as with any case, as more facts become known and as more things happen, the facts and the analysis change.”
The plea deal came after defense lawyer Ellen Michaels planned to aggressively challenge how police gathered and shared information to get an arrest warrant. She argued that police didn't disclose that Moore and Shiver had a working relationship.
Moore did not harm himself and was peacefully arrested in a parking lot away from Shiver's apartment.
After the hearing, outside the courthouse, Moore held a Bible in one hand and his wife's hand with the other.
“Sherrone is grateful for this matter to be resolved and he and his wife, Kelli, are ready to move forward with their family and focus on the next chapter,” Michaels said.
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White reported from Detroit.
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EDITOR’S NOTE — This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org
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