Former Ohio State quarterback facing new drug charges

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A former Ohio State quarterback could face prison time after he was allegedly found with cocaine, which would violate a recent probation sentence.

According to court documents, Art Schlichter, 63, is charged with possession of cocaine after an incident in North Linden on Feb. 2 that involved a deputy with the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

At around 4:22 a.m. a highway patrol trooper pulled over Schlichter, who was in a disabled vehicle at the intersection of East Hudson Street and Hamilton Avenue. There, the trooper reported seeing drug paraphernalia in the car and that Schlichter gave him two crack pipes out of his pocket.

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The trooper conducted a probable cause search and found small white rocks inside a silver paper fold. Schlichter reportedly told the trooper they were “crack rocks”.

Schlichter was recently sentenced to one year of probation after pleading guilty to a fifth-degree felony drug charge stemming from an incident in June 2022, when he was found unresponsive and had to be revived with Narcan at a hotel outside of Columbus.

Online court records showed that if Schlichter violates his probation, he would be subject to 11 months in prison. The court has also reserved the right to extend his probation by two years.

In 2021, Schlichter was released from the Trumbull Correctional Institution in Leavittsburg, Ohio, serving time for 2011 federal fraud charges related to a ticket scheme in which he swindled millions of dollars from his victims.

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Before that 2011 conviction, Schlichter spent 10 years in prison in Indiana for gambling-related crimes. Upon release in 2006, Schlichter wrote a book about his addiction, “Busted,” and became an anti-gambling crusader. But even as he railed against casinos during church appearances, he was racking up new gambling debts.

He played at Ohio State from 1978 to 1981, becoming the program’s all-time leader in offense as a Buckeye. After his college days, Schlichter was drafted fourth overall by the Baltimore Colts in the 1982 NFL draft. He threw three touchdown passes in the NFL before moving over to arena football.

Schlichter is scheduled to appear in Franklin County Municipal Court for an arraignment hearing on Feb. 12.

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