Georgia WR Rara Thomas has felony charge dismissed

Rara Thomas is no longer facing a felony charge of false imprisonment stemming from a late January arrest and he could have a misdemeanor charge expunged as well. DawgsHQ has confirmed that Thomas’ lawyers and Athens-Clarke County prosecutors got together on Friday and the most serious charge was dropped all together. Chip Towers of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution was first to report.

“We’re happy that we were able to work with the district attorney’s office to reach a resolution that was fair and just and agreeable to all of the parties, including the alleged victim,” Kim Stephens, Thomas’ Athens-based attorney, told the AJC.

Thomas is also facing a charge of misdemeanor domestic battery. He’ll enter a pretrial diversion program for that. Stephens tells the AJC that Thomas will have to complete an anger-management course, 40 hours of community service, and will pay service fees to the court. Once all of that is in the books, Thomas will have the charges expunged from his record.

Details of Thomas’ arrest…

Per the police report, two officers were called to McWhorter Hall. A female employee directed them to room 422 where an argument had generated a lot of noise. The alleged victim answered the door, advising police that there had been a “verbal argument” but that it had “resolved itself.”

When the officers probed further, the alleged victim claimed that the argument began Sunday evening. It was over the fact that she was following a specific but unidentified male on social media and Thomas was upset.

The alleged victim went to the gym to escape the argument, but it continued through text message and picked right back up when she returned. That’s when the yelling either began or gained volume.

As the alleged victim and Thomas were speaking with different officers, the officer interviewing the victim overheard Thomas make mention of being struck by the female. The report says that after hearing Thomas say that, the female victim commented that the UGA wideout had told her not to mention the bruises that he had given her.

The alleged victim claimed that she tried to get herself out of the situation by leaving before it became physical, but Thomas stood in the doorway and wouldn’t let her. She also says that when she advised that she wanted to call her mother, Thomas took her phone and Apple watch.

She claims that Thomas grabbed he right arm and left a bruise, one that was visible to the arresting officer, with his thumb. Thomas then allegedly pushed her face first into the bed and pushed her again when she tried to get up, causing abrasions to her shins in the process. All of those injuries were visible to the arresting officer.

The report notes that the officers traded places and when they did, Thomas claimed that the alleged victim choked him and broke a laptop valued at $1,200 by detaching the screen from the keyboard. He claims to have placed the female on the bed softly and once she calmed down, she got off the bed, sat in a chair, and called a friend.

The officer writing the report claims that Thomas’ did not have injuries consistent with his testimony but did have bruising on his forearms. Thomas claims that happened when he walked out of the room with her phone and Apple Watch. At that time they were seen by a group of female students who started asking about the noise. Thomas and the alleged victim then decided it was best to return to the room. Photos were taken of the female’s injuries and the broken laptop.

When interviewed again to reconcile inconsistencies in the stories, the report says that the female stated she and Thomas had lived together in Mississippi and Alabama and that they were planning to live together in Athens as well.

How Thomas ended up at Georgia as a transfer…

Georgia added Thomas to its roster in December after he elected to transfer from Mississippi State after two seasons. He’s one of two transfer wideouts added by Georgia at that time. The other being former Dominick Lovett from Missouri. Thomas chose Georgia over Auburn, Ole Miss, and Tennessee.

Thomas was Mississippi State’s leading receiver in 2022. He caught 44 passes for 626 yards and seven touchdowns for the Bulldogs. UGA made him a target quickly after he entered the portal. Thomas visited campus in December and trusted sources told DawgsHQ that his recruitment was essentially over at that point.

The addition of Thomas and Lovett had Georgia fans quite excited. It was also welcome for receivers coach Bryan McClendon, who told DawgsHQ at Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl media day that the Bulldogs had “hit the jackpot” in adding those two players.

Thomas was back in the UGA facility a few weeks ago and Stephens told the AJC that it is his understanding that, with the felony dropped, as long as his client has no other off-field set backs, he will be able to rejoin the team in full.