Two Penn St. players told to stand trial on felony assault charges

BELLEFONTE, Pa. (AP) -Two Penn State football players were ordered Wednesday to stand trial on refiled felony assault charges in connection with a campus fight last year.Police said defensive tackle Chris Baker and linebacker Navorro Bowman beat up

BELLEFONTE, Pa. (AP) -Two Penn State football players were ordered Wednesday to stand trial on refiled felony assault charges in connection with a campus fight last year.

District Judge Carmine Prestia dismissed the felony counts last month and ordered the players to stand trial on misdemeanor charges.

But the Centre County District Attorney's office refiled the felony charges in late December, saying that Prestia erred. Prosecutors also requested a new judge.

Blair County District Judge Fred Miller came in Wednesday to oversee the preliminary hearing on the refiled charges.

Prosecutors must now decide whether to try the cases against each player separately. A trial is scheduled for spring.

Baker, 20, of Windsor, Conn., and Bowman, 19, of District Heights, Md., were suspended the last two games of the season because of their legal trouble.

Assistant District Attorney Steve Sloane said prosecutors will decide in the next two weeks whether to charge a third suspect.

Prosecutors are also weighing whether to ask a judge to revoke bail for Baker, Sloane said. The player was already awaiting trial on charges related to an off-campus fight in April when he was accused of the assault.

That decision could come by the end of the week, Sloane said.

In an unrelated case, defensive back Willie Harriott, 20, of New Haven, Conn., waived his preliminary hearing Wednesday on charges of driving under the influence and speeding, stemming from a Nov. 11 arrest. A trial will be scheduled for spring.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.