A former NFL player and current Michigan State University trustee has been charged with misdemeanor assault and battery.
The Lansing State Journal reports that Mitch Lyons was arraigned today in Jackson County District Court. The 47-year-old Lyons is a Republican from the Grand Rapids area in western Michigan. He faces a January 29th hearing.
Details of the charge were not released, but Lyons' attorney, Brian Lennon, said in a statement that "the overall situation was a misunderstanding."
Lyons played football from 1988 to 1992 at Michigan State. He spent seven years in the NFL with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Atlanta Falcons.
He has been a trustee at Michigan State since 2011.