Cougars Football | WSU safety Xavier Hicks charged with contact-lens tampering

Washington State safety Xavier Hicks has been charged with felony second-degree assault. He is accused of putting rubbing alcohol in his roommate's contact-lens case after a dispute about household expenses.

The roommate, teammate Grady Maxwell, didn't put the lenses in his eyes, according to Whitman County deputy prosecutor Bill Druffel. If Maxwell had done so, the results could have been corneal burn that would have been "very painful" and caused temporary blurred vision but probably wouldn't have resulted in permanent damage, Druffel said.

The charge was filed Wednesday in Whitman County Superior Court. Hicks already was facing a felony charge in a credit-card fraud case. The second-degree theft case is based on a $30.63 purchase of gasoline with a credit card that does not belong to Hicks. He has pleaded not guilty.

Three other purchases, totaling less than $175, were made with the credit card, but the case is based on the gasoline purchase because it was recorded by a security camera, according to the prosecutor's office.

Hicks has been "suspended indefinitely" from the team, according to a WSU spokesman. Hicks is from Fullerton, Calif., and will be a redshirt junior in the fall. He started three games last fall and played in 11. He earned a reputation as a hard hitter and was the No. 9 tackler on the team, with 51 tackles, 25 of them solo.

Also suspended from the team is starting defensive tackle A'i Ahmu, who was charged with a misdemeanor alcohol offense two weeks ago after a window-breaking incident at a fraternity.

Craig Smith: 206-464-8279 or csmith@seattletimes.com