Dye pleads guilty Ex-UMaine player issues an apology

Former University of Maine basketball player Clinton “Huggy” Dye pleaded guilty Monday to a charge of assault in connection with an Oct. 7 incident involving his girlfriend.

The 22-year-old Dye, accompanied by attorney Theodore S. Curtis of Orono, entered the plea Monday at 3rd District Court in Bangor, according to Penobscot County Assistant District Attorney Jim Diehl.

Dye, a native of Danville, Ill., was sentenced to 30 days in Penobscot County Jail, with all but two days suspended, and was placed on probation for one year. He will serve the jail time starting Friday.

Dye was arrested by Bangor Police Oct. 7 and charged with assault after witnesses said he repeatedly struck a 33-year-old Bangor woman and ripped off some of her clothing during an incident at their home. The woman later told police she had been pushed down a flight of stairs. She suffered multiple bruises and contusions, according to police reports.

Curtis issued a statement on Dye’s behalf.

“Mr. Dye regrets this unfortunate situation and apologizes to his teammates, the University of Maine and his fans,” the statement said. “He wants the public to know he feels badly about what happened. Regardless of the extenuating circumstances, it is seldom appropriate to be involved in a fight. Mr. Dye will now meet the penalty imposed by the judge and move his life forward.”

Dye was a key member of the UMaine men’s basketball team for three seasons, the last two as a starter. As a result of the incident, he was dismissed from the team Oct. 8 by coach John Giannini.

Dye is still enrolled at UMaine, but is not attending classes, according to Curtis.

The 6-foot-2 guard ranked third on the team in scoring last season with 13.3 points per game and led the Black Bears with 58 3-pointers. He was an All-America East second-team pick as a sophomore in 1999-2000.

Dye, who played a year of postgraduate ball at Maine Central Institute in Pittsfield, finished his UMaine career ranked 16th in scoring with 1,076 points. He was an America East All-Rookie selection in 1998-99.