Racing, reckless driving charges against Smael Mondon dropped

Racing and reckless driving charges against Georgia linebacker Smael Mondon have been dropped, according to multiple reports.

Mondon was arrested July 10 on one charge of racing and one charge of reckless driving. Mondon did plead guilty to a misdemeanor count of driving too fast for conditions.

“We feel like this was the appropriate resolution,” Mondon’s attonery Billy Healan told ESPN’s Mark Schlabach. “Smael accelerated too fast, but he was not racing and wasn’t reckless. He has paid his fine, and he is ready to move on from here. Smael is scheduled to graduate in December and had no prior traffic incidents.”

Mondon attended defensive driving and victim impact classes while also paying a $500 fine.

Per the police report, Mondon was spotted July 10 by an officer racing another vehicle. The driver of the other vehicle was identified as freshman Georgia cornerback DeMello Jones, who was not arrested. The police report stated that Mondon was going 75 miles per hour in a 40-mile-per-hour zone down West Broad Street in Athens.

Georgia coach Kirby Smart has not publically stated if the senior linebacker will be suspended for the season opener against Clemson. “We don’t talk about the suspensions,” Smart said at SEC media days. “I think it’s pretty obvious that we’ve done them in the past. You guys know when we do them. Each of those cases is very different and they’ll be handled in different ways.”

Mondon is expected to start at inside linebacker for Georgia this season. He totaled 68 tackles in 13 games last season, adding 5.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks. Mondon has been limited at practice with a foot injury, but that is not expected to limit his availability for the opener.

Mondon is one of five Georgia players arrested during this offseason, with four the result of driving-related incidents. Running back Trevor Etienne and wide receiver Sacovie White had their charges dropped. Wide receiver Rara Thomas was dismissed from the team, though his arrest was not for driving reasons.

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