NJ charges against Titans' Britt downgraded

JERSEY CITY, N.J. (AP) - A New Jersey judge on Thursday downgraded three charges against Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt for offenses stemming from his second recent arrest in the state.

Britt was charged June 8 with resisting arrest and related offenses after being confronted by Hoboken detectives who suspected he was carrying a marijuana cigar. But the charges were downgraded Thursday to disorderly persons offenses and remanded back to Hoboken Municipal Court. A hearing has been scheduled for June 23.

Britt, wearing a three-piece grey suit and reportedly accompanied by his father, smiled broadly and politely declined to comment on the charges. When asked if he had any message for his fans he replied: "I love them."

Britt's lawyer also declined to comment after the hearing.

The 22-year-old pleaded guilty last week to motor vehicle violations related to a previous, unrelated speeding arrest in his hometown of Bayonne. Charges in that case had also been downgraded.

He also has two arrest warrants outstanding in Tennessee. They were issued April 14 by the Tennessee Highway Patrol. The agency is investigating an issue on Britt's driver's license applications.

The former Rutgers University standout became the first player from the university drafted in the first round when he was picked by the Titans in 2009.

He played in all 16 games as a rookie, with six starts. Among all rookies, he ranked seventh in the NFL and third in the AFC with 42 catches and fifth with his 701 yards receiving. Overall, he ranked eighth in the NFL averaging 16.7 yards per catch.

But Britt has had seven different incidents with police since being drafted in April 2009.

He was arrested in January 2010 in Glen Ridge, N.J., when police found three outstanding traffic warrants from two different New Jersey towns. Britt paid $865 and was released.

Nashville police stopped him in August 2010 during training camp, ticketing him for driving without a license because he obtained a photo ID after misplacing his license.

He also was accused of being involved in a bar fight Oct. 22 in Nashville, but authorities later decided not to charge him.

Titans coach Jeff Fisher benched him for the first quarter of a game against Philadelphia.

And then at the start of 2011, Britt was faced with a theft-by-deception charge for failing to pay bail he helped secure for a friend. Britt made the $12,500 payment earlier this year.

A few months later, on April 12, Britt was arrested in Bayonne after police said he had been driving his Porsche at 71 mph in a 50-mph zone. He initially faced felony charges in the case, but pleaded to careless driving charges that were downgraded to motor vehicle violations, and paid a fine.

The day after his lawyer appeared on his behalf on those charges in a Bayonne court, Britt was arrested in Hoboken on June 8 and charged with obstructing the administration of the law, resisting arrest and tampering with or fabricating evidence.

Those charges were the ones downgraded to disorderly persons offenses Thursday.

Attorney Jonathan Farmer has said Britt will be in Tennessee soon to deal with the outstanding warrants.

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Associated Press Writer Teresa Walker in Nashville, Tenn., contributed to this report.

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