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Dan Wetzel
Multiple authors
Former Michigan football coach Sharon Moore agreed to a deal Friday in which she pleaded no contest to two new misdemeanor charges in exchange for dropping one previous felony count and two separate misdemeanor counts.
The plea agreement focuses on Moore’s actions on Dec. 10 after his sudden firing as Michigan coach. The university fired Moore that day for having an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.
Moore, 40, soon drove to the staff member’s apartment and was initially charged with felony home invasion and misdemeanor counts of breaking and entering and breaking a domestic relationship. The staff member told police the married father of three threatened to harm himself with a butter knife. That same day, the staff member reported the relationship to the school.
On Friday, prosecutors agreed to drop the initial, more serious, charges in exchange for Moore pleading no contest to two new misdemeanors — malicious use of a telecommunications device in a domestic relationship and trespassing.
“All of the (initial) allegations against Mr. Moore are unsupported by the facts of the law,” Moore’s attorney, Ellen Michaels, said after the hearing. “The dismissal of these charges validates the concerns we have raised about the investigation from the beginning.
“Mr Moore is happy to put it behind him and move on.”
Moore, holding his wife Kelly’s hand, did not comment after the hearing.
Michaels’ request that Moore be freed from wearing an electronic tether as part of his bond agreement was rejected by Judge J. Cedric Simpson declined pending an interview with authorities.
Moore will be arraigned April 14 in Washtenaw County Court and could face up to a year in prison, though attorneys not connected to the case told ESPN they don’t expect Moore to serve any time.
Moore coached the Wolverines for two seasons, compiling a 16-8 record before being fired. He served as the team’s offensive coordinator during the Wolverines’ 2023 national championship season.
