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Wednesday, August 09, 2006 
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Maurice Clarett was arrested early Wednesday after a highway chase that ended with police using Mace on the former Ohio State running back and finding four loaded guns in his truck, a police spokesman said.
Officers used Mace to subdue Clarett after a stun gun was ineffective because the former Fiesta Bowl star was wearing a bullet-resistant vest, Sgt. Michael Woods said.
"It took several officers to get him handcuffed," Woods said. "Even after he was placed in the paddy wagon, he was still kicking at the doors and being a problem for the officers."
Clarett was being interviewed at police headquarters. Authorities planned to charge him with carrying concealed weapons and other counts, Woods said.
Clarett made an illegal U-turn on the city's east side and failed to stop when officers tried to pull him over.
Clarett was being pursued by police while driving eastbound on Interstate 70 when he darted across the median and began heading west. Clarett drove over a spike strip that was placed on the highway, flattening the driver's side tires of the SUV, Woods said.
Clarett exited the highway and pulled into a restaurant parking lot, where officers removed him from the SUV after he failed to obey numerous orders to exit the vehicle, Woods said.
After Clarett was placed in a police van, officers discovered a loaded rifle and three loaded handguns in the front of the vehicle, Woods said.
Woods said he did not know where Clarett got the guns or why he had them and that federal authorities plan to trace their ownership.
Clarett, 22, is currently awaiting trial on two counts of aggravated robbery, four counts of robbery and one count of carrying a concealed weapon in a separate case. Authorities said he was identified by witnesses as the person who flashed a gun and robbed two people in an alley behind the Opium Lounge in the early hours of Jan. 1.
Clarett scored the winning touchdown in the second overtime to lead Ohio State to the 2002 national championship, the school's first since 1968. But that was the last game the freshman played for Ohio State. He sat out the 2003 season after being charged with misdemeanor falsification on a police report, then dropped out of school. He sued to be included in the 2004 NFL draft and lost in court.
A surprise third-round pick in the 2005 draft, he was cut by the Denver Broncos during the preseason. |