Vernon — In his brief UConn basketball career, freshman James Bouknight has made more headlines for what he's done off the court than on.

Bouknight apologized for his actions during an appearance in Rockville Superior Court on Monday morning.

Facing charges of evading responsibility, interfering with a police officer, traveling too fast for conditions and operation of a motor vehicle without a license, Bouknight was approved to participate in the accelerated pretrial rehabilitation program.

"I'm extremely sorry about what happened," Bouknight said while standing outside the courtroom. "I'm learning from this. I'm learning I need to be the best student, best athlete and best citizen that I can be."

Bouknight declined further comment.

If Bouknight stays out of trouble with the law and successfully completes the program, his charges will be dismissed and erased from his record in a year (Nov. 18, 2020). He also has to make restitution to the family of a female UConn student that owned the car that he damaged while driving during the incident on Sept. 27.

In a letter written to the court, the UConn student's family voiced support for Bouknight's request to be granted accelerated rehabilitation.

While addressing judge Hope C. Seeley, Rob Britt, Bouknight's attorney, pointed out that Bouknight, a first time offender, accepted responsibility early on for his actions.

Bouknight made a brief statement to the court, apologizing to the car owner's family, his teammates, coaching staff and his family.

"I made a terrible mistake," said Bouknight, a 19-year-old from Brooklyn, N.Y.

Afterward, Britt spoke on the freshman's behalf outside the courtroom.

"We greatly appreciate the court's wisdom and discretion in granting this program for James," Britt said. "I think the circumstances of this case the judge took into consideration in granting it with the condition that she imposed.

"James is different than the other people sitting in the courtroom in that his case has gotten him a lot of exposure, negative at this time. And that's been a factor in his life. This is going to be an ongoing learning experience for him. It's not just something that he can move past. He carries it with him. And I don't think that's the worst thing in the world."

Bouknight just completed the three-game suspension handed down by coach Dan Hurley. While sitting out, he has continued to practice. He's expected to be in uniform for the first time when UConn (2-1) plays Buffalo Thursday night in opening round of the Charleston Classic in South Carolina.

A prized recruit, Bouknight will likely be a vital part of the backcourt rotation for the Huskies this season.

Hurley voiced support for Bouknight when first speaking about the matter about a month ago and also expressed his incredible disappointment in the freshman's bad choices.

"I believe in James Bouknight," Hurley said. "We got to know him really well during the recruiting process. I've got extreme confidence that from here on out everything that's attached to James Bouknight is going to be really, really positive once this thing has played out."

"... Obviously, he can't have another situation. He's got to carry himself with humility and also strength to be able to handle this situation and take everything that's comes with it and not let this situation define him. He's got to learn from it."

g.keefe@theday.com