Navy player sentenced

ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- A military judge sentenced a former U.S. Naval Academy football player Wednesday to two years in prison with one year suspended for stealing charge cards from teammates' lockers.

Christopher O. Rivers, a former Southern Durham High player, pleaded guilty to larceny and forgery charges. The sophomore also pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice for trying to impede a Navy probe by asking a teammate to tell investigators he had permission to use a charge card.

The sentence means Rivers will serve at least one year in prison, with another year possible if he is not a model prisoner.

Capt. Bruce MacKenzie, the military judge, also dismissed Rivers from the Navy and ordered forfeiture of pay and allowance.

Rivers, 20, a 5-foot-7, 155-pound offensive back, admitted taking the cards and buying 33 Bose TriPort Headphones valued at nearly $4,000.

Rivers told the judge he planned to sell the headphones for extra money to send home to his mother. The cards Rivers took could be used by students at the academy's store.

He also pleaded guilty to stealing a calculator valued at about $195. Most of the crimes occurred between February and April, when Rivers and the victims were freshmen.

Before sentencing, Rivers admitted he was wrong and described his upbringing without a father in a neighborhood with crime and gang activity. Rivers said once he arrived in Annapolis, he didn't receive as much money as he thought he would.

"All I ever wanted to do was provide for my family," Rivers said.

Teammates testified they were hurt and betrayed. Students in their first year, known as plebes, held the locker room in particularly high esteem.

"For a plebe, it's huge," said Midshipman Brian Blick, a fellow teammate who testified at the court martial hearing. "It's everything."

Blick, who noted that teammates are referred to as "brothers" and the team as a whole was referred to as "the brotherhood," said the thefts made players feel as though someone had "infiltrated us."

The teammates Rivers stole from were all freshmen.

Rivers would typically take the card out of lockers and buy three headphones before putting the cards back. He also would forge his teammates signatures on receipts.

Rivers' attorney, Lt. Paul Jenkins, told the judge that some students don't understand the source of the money used to pay for items purchased by the cards, and Rivers emphasized that he didn't realize he was stealing directly from his teammates.

Rivers and Blick both referred to the accounts as "funny money," and neither could recall receiving any information about the source of the funds.

All midshipmen receive the card to buy books, uniforms, cleaning materials and incidentals. It is a no-interest credit card, and payments are made through withholdings of students' pay.

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