Why was Arterio Morris arrested? KU guard dismissed from the Jayhawks post-arrest

Kansas Jayhawks fans were stunned by the news that point guard Arterio Morris had been arrested by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office on Friday morning. Morris is a recent transfer from Texas, where he helped the Longhorns reach the Elite Eight in this year's NCAA tournament.

He was formally charged with r*pe, circumstances unknown, and booked at the Douglas County jail with a bond set at $75,000.

After being suspended by Kansas due to a s*xual assault investigation in mid-September for the incident that allegedly happened at McCarthy Hall, Morris has now been dismissed from the program.

Johnny Furphy, Elmarko Jackson and Nick Timberlake were all mentioned in the investigative report as witnesses to the incident reported by an 18-year-old woman.

Per KUsports.com, Bill Self, the Kansas Jayhawks basketball coach released a statement on the Arterio Morris matter:

“When we learned of allegations regarding Arterio Morris, he was suspended from the Kansas men’s basketball program. We are now aware he has been arrested and charged, and he was dismissed from the program. As this is an ongoing legal matter, we are not able to comment further at this time.”

Why was Arterio Morris arrested

This wasn't the first time that Arterio Morris had been arrested. He was also arrested last year, as a Texas Longhorns player, after an ex-girlfriend reportedly pressed charges against him as he allegedly assaulted her after an acrimonious breakup.

He entered a plea deal a few weeks ago which resulted in the cancelation of a trial for the misdemeanor assault charge against him set for October.

The no-contest plea was to a Class C charge and he paid a $362 fine instead of facing a jury trial. However, just a few hours later, he was suspended by the Jayhawks due to the new allegations.

Even after being arrested for the assault, Morris still played in every game for the Longhorns mainly as a bench option, averaging 4.6 points.

When he transferred to the highly favored Kansas Jayhawks, coach Bill Self revealed that they had spoken to the compliance officers at Texas and were comfortable with his history.

Self said at the time (via AP Sports):

“Based on these discussions, we are comfortable welcoming Arterio to the University of Kansas and he is well aware of the high standards and expectations that come with being a member of the Kansas men’s basketball program. We fully expect him to meet those daily.”

With his basketball career on the line after his record in Texas and now in Kansas, the future doesn't look rosy for Arterio Morris.