Florida State University has dismissed Chuck Kennon, its top-ranked 2026 football recruit, following a felony arrest stemming from a high-speed chase through Hillsborough County early Saturday morning.
The 18-year-old was taken into custody Monday on charges of aggravated fleeing to elude, a second-degree felony; false imprisonment, a third-degree felony; and resisting an officer without violence, a misdemeanor, according to UPI. Florida State said in its release that Kennon’s conduct was detrimental to the football program.
According to a criminal report affidavit from Florida Highway Patrol state trooper Erik Cutino, the chase began around 2 a.m. EDT Saturday when he was conducting stationary laser speed enforcement alongside the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. A sheriff’s deputy clocked a Dodge Durango traveling 79 mph in a 50 mph zone.
Officers moved to overtake the vehicle, but the driver ran a red light and struck a raised curb before accelerating to speeds exceeding 150 mph. Law enforcement briefly lost sight of the Durango during the pursuit. The vehicle was later found stopped with a flat tire, and a trooper who approached it saw Kennon get out and run. He fled into an industrial plant, where officers lost track of him.
While searching the area, deputies found a woman with lacerations on her arm, wearing a bodysuit described as covered in dirt stains, blood and grass. She told investigators she had been riding in the SUV with Kennon when he began driving recklessly, and that she asked him to stop the vehicle at least ten times.
Attorneys Michael Shapley of Jansen & Davis P.A. and Ralph Vickers of Suncoast Lawyer, PLLC, have entered a not-guilty plea on Kennon’s behalf.
“We urge the public to keep in mind that Mr. Kennon has not been convicted of any crime at this time, and that the legal process is ongoing,” Shapley said.
The case remains active in Hillsborough County.
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