A wide receiver for the University Southern California’s football team has asked a judge to set aside an indefinite emergency order by the school removing him from campus after a felony domestic violence arrest in July.
Bru McCoy, 21, was arrested on July 24 on suspicion of physically assaulting an unnamed romantic partner. He was released the same night on bail and was scheduled to appear in court in November.
McCoy reportedly met the young woman when they were in high school. The two dated on and off in the years since. She is reportedly unaffiliated with USC, and the alleged incident occurred off campus.
L.A. prosecutors have since declined to bring charges against McCoy. Nevertheless, in the wake of his arrest, the player was temporarily removed from all team activities and ordered to stay off campus.
Winston B. Crisp, vice president of student affairs for USC, denied McCoy’s appeal for removal of the emergency order on Aug. 5. Court filings stated that Crisp cited “identified factors” that McCoy posed “an immediate threat” and that the removal was justified.
McCoy’s petition, filed Monday in L.A. County Superior Court, alleged that USC removed him from campus without evidence to support the existence of an emergency triggered by his presence, or that he poses an immediate threat to the safety of fellow students and faculty.
The petition characterized the school’s decision to maintain the emergency removal and indefinite suspension as “arbitrary and capricious.”
McCoy graduated from Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana. Shortly after arriving at USC in the spring of 2019, he transferred to the University of Texas. That year he was ranked the nation's number one athlete in his recruiting class. He returned to USC in June of that year, but did not participate in games until 2020.