7:20pm: Although Boutte has avoided charges, the NFL announced later Tuesday (via ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss) will continue its investigation into the 2023 Patriots draftee. The league’s personal conduct policy does not require a conviction to punish a player. Boutte remains eligible for training camp.
11:13am: In January, second-year Patriots wideout Kayshon Boutte was arrested on gambling and computer fraud charges. Those charges have now been dropped, though, as detailed by ESPN’s Mike Reiss. 
Boutte faced one felony count of computer fraud in addition to a misdemeanor of gaming prohibited by someone under 21 stemming from an alleged betting scheme during his time at LSU. He was accused of using an alias to place at least 8,900 wagers; of that total, a minimum of 17 were believed to have been on college football games, including six LSU contests. Investigators from the Louisiana State Police Gaming Enforcement Division discovered the wagers took place between April 6, 2022 and May 7, 2023, at which point Boutte was 20.
The state of Louisiana’s decision to drop the charges now leaves the former five-star recruit free to focus on training camp and the preseason, though. Boutte was a participant in New England’s OTAs and minicamp and his performance this summer will go a long way in determining his roster status. After a college tenure which included plenty of potential being flashed in addition to injury problems, he logged only a minor offensive role across five games as a rookie.
The former sixth-rounder has considerable competition for a spot on the 53-man roster. New England signed K.J. Osborn in free agency and added a pair of wideouts (second-rounder Ja’Lynn Polk and fourth-rounder Javon Baker) during the draft. Those newcomers will be joined in camp by the likes of Kendrick Bourne, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Demario Douglas as presumptive locks to make the team.
As a result, Boutte will be competing with Jalen Reagor and Tyquan Thornton for the final one or two spots at the receiver position. His limited usage last season could limit interest shown on waivers by outside teams in the event he failed to make the 53-man roster, but being in the clear from a legal standpoint is nevertheless a positive development from his perspective.
It would be interesting to know why the charges were dropped…..
Is it really worth ruining a kids life over betting on some games?
Of all the crimes we’ve seen guys commit this off season the gambling ones I definitely think should just be misdemeanors with fines / community service at best from a legal stand point (however ncaa and nfl handle the gambling is a separate issue depending on certain things).
I’m just saying I am curious why they were dropped
Not enough evidence?
Authorities found out it wasn’t him?
He rolled over on some bigger fish in the gambling ring?
They arrested him, they just didn’t drop the charges because they decided they didn’t wanna ruin his life.
I think any competent defense attorney would be able to argue successfully that a guy who makes 8900 gambling bets has an addiction problem. The prosecutors probably realized that and decided to fight a more winnable battle.
@crosseyedlemon, I agree to an extent, but that’s also like saying a guy drinks 18 beers and crashes his car should have the DUI charge dropped cause anyone that drinks 18 beers has a problem
A guy sitting at his keyboard placing online bets probably won’t be causing property damage or physically injuring someone unlike an impaired person behind the wheel of a vehicle.
Good point
Didn’t you ever hear the expression “The law(d) works in mysterious ways”?
It’s a-Boutte time!
How can the NFL punish him for non-criminal conduct from prior to being in the league?
Boutte’s wagering, according to police, continued for approximately a week after he was drafted.