PITTSBURGH -- Super Bowl XLIII MVP Santonio Holmes, cited for allegedly having a small amount of marijuana in his vehicle, waived his preliminary hearing Thursday afternoon in Municipal Court downtown.
"Where credibility is at issue or where there's a constitutional challenge, this court can't address it and so we elected simply not to have him do that," defense attorney Robert DelGreco Jr. said.
Raw Video: 
Holmes In Municipal Court; Lawyer Answers QuestionsDistrict Judge Gene Ricciardi scheduled Holmes' formal arraignment for April 29.
Ricciardi told Holmes "on a personal note" that he "wanted to commend" the Pittsburgh Steelers' wide receiver for
donating the gloves that he wore when he caught the Super Bowl-winning touchdown to a charity auction because "it showed strength of character."
"The judge actually -- I don't know that he meant it to be public, but he commended him on a philanthropic effort that he made, relative to his gloves," DelGreco said.
Slideshow: Pictures From Super Bowl XLIII Pittsburgh police say they found three marijuana-filled cigars in Holmes' car when the Pittsburgh Steelers' wide receiver was pulled over Oct. 23 near Mellon Arena.
Police say they stopped Holmes because his vehicle matched the description of one they were looking for in a drug sting. However, they learned it was not the right vehicle.
Police say they smelled marijuana when they stopped Holmes. They say the 24-year-old was cooperative and showed them where the blunts were.
When asked if he was smoking marijuana in the vehicle, Holmes said, "No, but yesterday I was," according to a police affidavit.
Holmes' possession charge -- "as low a grade a misdemeanor as you can get," according to DelGreco -- carries up to a year in jail. A lenient penalty such as probation or a fine is common in most cases.
DelGreco said he advised Holmes to waive the hearing because he intends to fight the charges in Common Pleas Court.
"At the magistrate level, very limited jurisdiction, very limited authority -- the magistrate can't assess the credibility of witnesses, and certainly can't evaluate a constitutional challenge," DelGreco said. "Those matters have to be done at the Court of Common Pleas, so we saw no use or utility in having a hearing today and we'll have to address the matter at a subsequent date at the Court of Common Pleas level."
DelGreco declined to elaborate about specific constitutional issues he sees in the case, although he said he will file a motion to suppress evidence.
The Steelers
de-activated Holmes for an Oct. 26 game against the New York Giants following the police incident.
Holmes apologized in a written statement upon returning to the team the day after the Steelers were beaten by the Giants.
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