An attorney for a fourth player, George Bryan, had earlier asked that his client's case be continued.
Senior offensive lineman Jake Vermiglio, redshirt junior defensive tackle J.R. Sweezy, redshirt junior defensive tackle Markus Kuhn along with Bryan, a redshirt junior tight end, were inside an apartment on April 24 when police found marijuana, drug paraphernalia and ephedrine -- a NCAA banned substance.
Lawyers for the players argued the case should be thrown out. All of the players except Bryan appeared in court.
The judge dismissed the case and dropped charges against Vermiglio, Sweezy, and Kuhn after hearing testimony from one of the Raleigh police officers involved in the search. He testified that after smelling pot smoke he entered the apartment behind one of the complex's managers without announcing himself or asking permission even though there were apparently no immediate concerns about a security threat or destruction of evidence.
Attorneys said that meant police illegally entered the apartment where the drugs were found. The judge agreed saying that although the officer's actions weren't intentional, the law about crossing the threshold without permission or a search warrant is clear. The officer did eventually get a search warrant and found the illegal drugs, but that didn't matter because the original entry was ruled unconstitutional.
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