Former University football walk-on Mike Milano was acquitted Thursday of felony assault charges stemming from a confrontation between him and a University hockey player last October. But the Washtenaw County jury did convict him of aggravated assault, a misdemeanor charge.

Circuit Judge David Swartz, however, recommended Milano file an order to have the misdemeanor conviction expunged, and that he would be willing to sign it, according to John Shea, Milano’s defense attorney.

Milano will be eligible to have the misdemeanor conviction expunged five years from the date of sentencing, according to Michigan law.

In an interview after the trial, Shea explained the benefits of expunging the conviction from Milano’s record.

“Expunging the conviction does not only remove it from his record, but Mike would also be able to truthfully say he has never been convicted of that crime,” Shea said.

Shea continued to say that expunging the conviction is a good option for Milano, though it may not be the only one.

“I’m quite certain that Mike will seek to have (the conviction) set aside once the five years passes,” Shea said. “That is, unless we find a way to remove the conviction before then.”

Milano’s sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 3, where he could face up to one year in county jail for aggravated assault, as opposed to the maximum of 10 years in prison that he would have faced with a felony conviction.

The misdemeanor conviction comes after a confrontation that occurred between Milano and former University hockey player Steve Kampfer on Oct. 12, 2008, which resulted in Kampfer’s hospitalization and him missing hockey activities for two months.

The incident began when Kampfer got into an argument with his ex-girlfriend outside of Rick’s American Café on Church Street, according to an annarbor.com article. Milano then confronted Kampfer and the two began to argue themselves.

During the trial, Washtenaw County Assistant Prosecutor Paul Barnett said the argument appeared to be over until Kampfer said one final word and angered Milano, according to the annarbor.com article.

The four-day trial that ended on Oct. 23 included the testimonies of both Milano and Kampfer, along with other eye-witnesses and character witnesses, according to the annarbor.com article.

Milano testified that he confronted Kampfer for being rough with the woman he was arguing with. Kampfer told the jury that he could not remember many details of the assault itself, though he said he had only grabbed his ex-girlfriend’s wrist in order to keep her from walking away, not to threaten her, according to annarbor.com.

The article also said that Milano’s defense attorney, John Shea, questioned the credibility of eyewitnesses to the incident, as there were conflicting stories concerning the manner in which Milano grabbed Kampfer.

The jury deliberated for almost seven hours before announcing the acquittal of the felony charges and the conviction of the assault misdemeanor, according to the article.

Shea told the Daily that while Milano is happy to be acquitted of the felony, he is still disappointed that he was convicted of the misdemeanor, believing he did the right thing the night of the incident.

Michigan Associate Athletic Director Bruce Madej said over e-mail that the Athletic Department would not comment on result of the trial.