Steelers' Holmes arraigned on marijuana charge

PITTSBURGH (AP) " Pittsburgh Steelers receiver and Super Bowl MVP Santonio Holmes was arraigned Wednesday on a misdemeanor marijuana charge stemming from a traffic stop.

Holmes' attorney, Robert DelGreco Jr., appeared at the brief hearing where charges were formally presented. Holmes did not appear, nor was he required to.

DelGreco said he planed to challenge the constitutionality of the stop, but did not elaborate.

"I will be filing a suppression motion. That will be a public record and we'll go from there," he said.

Pittsburgh police said they found three marijuana-filled cigars in Holmes' car when he was pulled over Oct. 23. Holmes was stopped because his car was similar to one they were looking for in a drug sting.

Holmes was cooperative and alerted officers to the drugs, police said.

DelGreco has characterized the charge "as low as a grade a misdemeanor you can get." The penalty is up to 30 days probation and a $500 fine, he said.

Coach Mike Tomlin deactivated Holmes for a game following the traffic stop. He was not arrested and received a court summons, which is common with misdemeanor charges in Pennsylvania.

Holmes said he "learned a lot" from missing a game following the traffic stop. Before the Super Bowl, Holmes told the media that he had dealt drugs for a year in his hometown of Belle Glade, Fla.

Holmes, a first-round draft pick out of Ohio State in 2006, has had two other run-ins with the law since the Steelers drafted him. In June 2006, he was charged with domestic violence in Columbus, Ohio. Those charges were dropped when the mother of one of his three children declined to help prosecute the case and prosecutors were assured that Holmes received anger management and domestic violence counseling through the NFL.

In May 2006, Holmes was arrested for disorderly conduct by police in Miami, who later dropped the charges.

No trial date has been set on the recent charge, but a pretrial conference was scheduled for May 22 in Allegheny County Court.