Sherrone Moore, ex-Michigan coach, set to learn if he faces jail time

Former University of Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore will be sentenced Tuesday in an Ann Arbor district court after pleading no contest last month to two misdemeanors for barging into the apartment of his executive assistant, with whom he had a relationship.

Moore faces up to six months in jail for trespassing and malicious use of a telecommunications device, the more serious of the two misdemeanors. He will be sentenced by 14A Ann Arbor District Court Judge Cedric Simpson.

His attorney, Ellen Michaels, said after his plea March 7 that it is "in everyone's best interests to just get this done."

Though Moore pleaded no contest due to concerns of civil liability, his plea will be treated like a guilty plea for sentencing, despite not admitting guilt.

More: Ex-UM coach Sherrone Moore pleads no contest to two misdemeanors

More: Why ex-UM coach Sherrone Moore's plea deal may vanish from court records

Moore had faced charges of third-degree home invasion, misdemeanor stalking and misdemeanor breaking and entering in connection with the Dec. 10 incident, but all three were dismissed as part of the plea deal. Had he been convicted of home invasion, the most serious of the three charges, Moore could have faced up to five years in prison.

The plea agreement happened during what was supposed to be an evidentiary hearing on whether the arrest warrant against Moore was valid. Questions were raised because the officer who requested a magistrate sign the warrant didn't disclose that Moore was the boss of the woman he was accused of stalking.

Why Moore's case may disappear from records

One of the subtler moves made by Michaels in March was to request deferral status for Moore, Troy defense attorney Wade Fink said.

More: Why ex-UM coach Sherrone Moore's plea deal may vanish from court records

Judge Simpson said he would consider the request for deferral status, which is a facet of state law that focuses on rehabilitation of a defendant over punishment.

If deferred status is granted, the sentencing is effectively postponed while the defendant completes a probation period and complies with specific conditions, which may include community service or counseling.

State law allows a judge to defer imposition of a sentence up to a year, Farmington Hills defense attorney Arthur Weiss said. Different courts handle such cases in different ways, he said, such as dismissing the charges or expunging them.

“If he grants him deferral status, then he would do a short period of probation," Fink said about Simpson. "After that short period of time, the whole case would get dismissed as if it didn’t even happen.”

Prosecutor: Added charges better reflect Moore's conduct

Moore, who was fired from UM after the university said an investigation found he had had an inappropriate relationship with a staff member, was arrested in December. Police and prosecutors said he entered without permission the home of his administrative assistant, with whom he was having an affair, and threatened her and himself with kitchen butter knives.

According to prosecutors, Moore told his executive assistant that "my blood is on your hands." The woman's contract with UM expired at the end of February and was not renewed.

Washtenaw County Assistant Prosecutor Kati Rezmierski said during the March plea hearing that the more appropriate charges to address Moore's behavior in December are the two misdemeanors to which he pleaded no contest, malicious use of a telephone and trespassing.

"We have arrived at that based on a thorough review of the additional involved evidence and investigation, as well as after consultation with, pursuant to our obligation of Crime Victim Rights Act, consultation with the victim, largely through her representatives in this matter," Rezmierski said, noting that there never has been enough evidence to prove or issue charges based on allegations of domestic violence against Moore.

"What we do believe the evidence supports is criminal misbehavior in the context of an intimate partner relationship," she added.

Former executive assistant speaks out

In her first public comments since Moore's firing and arrest, his former executive assistant Paige Shiver said the university failed to protect her from "years of manipulation, harassment, and exploitation" by Moore.

Shiver said the power imbalance between the "powerful head coach and a subordinate employee created an environment where (she) felt pressured, intimidated and unable to escape conduct that should never occur in any workplace — let alone at a public university."

More: Sherrone Moore's ex-assistant claims UM failed to protect her from 'manipulation'

UM is investigating the culture of its athletic department, led by the law firm Jenner & Block. In December, interim President Domenico Grasso said the university would take any necessary action on the findings of the investigation, which was originally sparked by rumors of Moore's conduct and later expanded to cover concerns related to the entire athletic department.

The investigation into the athletic department has cost the university over $9.5 million so far.

Michigan's athletic director, Warde Manuel, fired Moore the same day as his arrest, Dec. 10, with Moore's termination letter saying he lied during the university's investigation into his relationship with his executive assistant. That amounted to a violation of his contract as "fraud or dishonesty" in the course of his job's duties.

Moore's wife called 911 the day he was fired, before his arrest, out of fear he might harm himself, according to a recording of the emergency call obtained by The Detroit News. Moore had told her he'd been fired and was "in crisis," his wife told the dispatcher, and she didn't know where he was.

Moore was named UM's head football coach in January 2024, succeeding former coach Jim Harbaugh. He was the first Black head coach in Michigan football history and, at 37, the youngest head football coach at Michigan in more than half a century.

kberg@detroitnews.com

This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Ex-Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore to be sentenced after no contest plea