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California Dreamin’: Don’t Be a Distraction off the court or In a Court of Law

In the wake of a recent incident in China in which team members were arrested for shoplifting, the entire UCLA basketball and athletics program needs to hit the reset button.

Three UCLA freshmen (LiAngelo Ball, Cody Riley, and Jalen Hill), were arrested there for shoplifting including allegedly stealing sunglasses at a Louis Vuitton store. Now the players find themselves suspended indefinitely from the team (not to mention possible international legal consequences), and so much a distraction “off the court” that President Trump and the U.S. government had to allegedly intervene to help bring these young men home.

As any college or professional athlete should be aware, they are always just one split second and one wrong move away from losing everything they have worked so hard to achieve. Millions of young men would do anything to even sit on the bench of a world-renowned college men’s basketball program like UCLA. Now, because of one unfortunate decision, these athletes, the basketball program, and the entire university must deal with the repercussions.

As domestic relations courtroom attorneys often dealing with high profile individuals, we see such situations too many times.  A few tips for any high-visibility stars:

• Think before you speak or act because someone is always watching in our technologically connected world;
• Every move counts on or off the field of life and in and out of the courtroom;
• Always ask yourself whether you would like to see your actions blown up on screens in a courtroom;
• Consult with an attorney before you do anything you might regret, but certainly immediately afterward.

Once you are a “star” in any field, you need to grow up fast. If you don’t, your star might be tarnished or could even be taken away.