sport news Florida coach Billy Napier calls arrest of QB Jalen Kitna on child porn charges ... trends now
University of Florida head football coach Billy Napier called the arrest of quarterback Jalen Kitna on charges of possession of child pornography 'tragic' in his first comments since Kitna was taken in.
Kitna was arrested weeks ago after police found child pornography on his computer in Gainesville.
Napier spoke out for the first time after the incident, calling the situation a 'challenge'.
Florida coach Billy Napier spoke to the media for the first time since QB Jalen Kitna's arrest
'It's a sad, tragic event for all the people involved here, ' Napier said, adding he had no knowledge of the investigation until the morning of his arrest.
'I think really trying to help all the people involved. Obviously Jalen is going to have to move forward. But it's a challenge, and it's one that I appreciate our leadership.
'Certainly, we've done everything we can do to help our players and staff. But as you said here, there's some things that come with that. We're turning the page and moving forward.'
Napier added that he had no knowledge of the investigation until Kitna was already arrested
Kitna was dismissed from the University of Florida after he was accused of sending exploitative material over social media.
Kitna, the son of former NFL quarterback Jon, was initially suspended over the allegations, which the school called 'extremely serious charges.' He was released from jail Thursday on $80,000 bond following his arrest on Wednesday.
Jon, 50, said at Thursday's pretrial hearing that he would bring Jalen back to live with him in Texas ahead of his trial. Jalen is prohibited from using the internet and cannot have unsupervised contact with minors as a condition of his release.
Jalen appeared in four games this season as a backup to starter Anthony Richardson.
A judge ordered Kitna not to have any unsupervised contact with minors and to not have any access to the internet. The collegiate athlete has also been suspended indefinitely by Florida's football program following his arrest
Jalen Kitna was released from jail on $80,000 bond on Thursday after he was arrested on five child pornography charges that police said included images of a man having sex with a young girl.
Judge Meshon Rawls set the bond and as conditions for Kitna's release ordered him not to have any unsupervised contact with minors and not to have any internet access.
Kitna sobbed into his hands when his parents addressed the court during a 75-minute appearance. Jalen Kitna was at the Alachua County Jail and on a closed-circuit feed when Jon and Jennifer Kitna stepped to a podium in the courtroom and promised they would supervise their 19-year-old son back home in Burleson, Texas.
Jon Kitna tapped his
