Eastern Michigan basketball's Emoni Bates pleads down

Emoni Bates, a top college basketball recruit at Eastern Michigan University, pleaded down to a misdemeanor charge Wednesday after being charged with two felonies related to carrying a concealed weapon and altering ID marks on the weapon as a result of a traffic stop in September.

The agreement would exchange the two felony charges, each carrying prison sentences, to one misdemeanor of attempting to transport a loaded firearm in a vehicle. The maximum sentence for that misdemeanor is one year in jail or a $2,500 fine.

In a statement posted on social media Wednesday, Bates thanked his family, friends, fans and lawyer, Steve Haney, for their support.

"I hold myself accountable for making a poor decision, and hope you can forgive me as I grow because this will not be my last mistake, however; a lasting stigma to remind me of the severity of such a mistake," he wrote.

Bates, 18, returned to practice last week, Eastern Michigan athletic director Scott Wetherbee said in a statement after receiving notification that there was an agreement between the Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office and Bates’ attorneys to discard the felony charges.

Emoni Bates reinstated to Eastern Michigan basketball after plea deal on gun charges

Bates’ attorneys have maintained that Bates was not driving his own vehicle during the traffic stop and the gun, which was the cause of the charges, does not belong to Bates.

Bates ran a stop sign the evening of Sept. 18, according to a report from the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Department. Bates was the only person in the car, driving without a license, with marijuana and a handgun with one of its serial numbers scratched out in the car.

The 2022 black Mitsubishi Outlander Bates was pulled over in was registered to a business called BMGT LLC based in Memphis, Tennessee. Bates was on the University of Memphis’ basketball team last season.

As a part of the sentencing agreement, the prosecution is not going to object to Bates being sentenced under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act, or HYTA, which would allow Bates to complete probation to have his charges dismissed.

Judge Patrick Conlin said it's his plan to sentence Bates under HYTA, but impressed upon Bates that if between Wednesday and his sentencing he changes his mind about the sentencing agreement, Bates can withdraw his guilty plea. However, if Bates gets into trouble before sentencing, he could discard the sentencing agreement and keep the guilty plea.

Part of the sentencing agreement includes a one-year jail sentence that would be dismissed upon successful completion of a maximum of two years' probation where Bates would have regular meetings with mentors.

The judge also decided Bates does not need the court's permission to travel in his capacity as a EMU basketball player before his sentencing.

Bates is scheduled for sentencing on Dec. 14.

anichols@detroitnews.com