Sunday, March 15, 2009

You Might Want to Retire That Donte Stallworth Jersey

I guess because it's NCAA Tournament time this isn't getting played up as big, but I'm don't think we're gonna Donte Stallworth in the NFL for a little while. Donte was in Miami this weekend and along the way ENDED UP RUNNING OVER AND KILLING SOMEONE. I don't mean to be so blunt but that's literally what happened:

Mario Reyes was a family man, a loving husband and father. He came to South Florida from Cuba as a teenager and became an overnight crane operator in Miami. Still, his family said he couldn't afford a car and was forced to take the bus to work. Saturday, police said he was killed when a Bentley driven by Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth collided with him on a causeway linking Miami and Miami Beach.

Reyes was headed to the bus stop. ... His family and co-workers said he had clocked out only minutes before the accident around 7 a.m. "When the time came for him to leave, he grabbed his stuff and headed to the bus stop out front," co-worker Renier Calana told The Miami Herald. She worked with Reyes unloading cargo containers from the Port of Miami. "We could hear the impact," she said. "We all ran out, and he was lying there unconscious in the middle."

Reyes, 59, was near a crosswalk but it's unclear if he was crossing legally. Police said Stallworth has not been charged and was cooperating with the investigation. Officers drew blood to test for drugs or alcohol, which is routine. Results from the test could take anywhere from three days to three weeks, authorities said.

Stallworth has been pretty mum on the situation as I write this. Here's more from Pro Football Talk
As authorities in South Florida wait for the results of a blood draw performed on Browns receiver Donte’ Stallworth, a source with knowledge of the investigation tells us that prosecutors are preparing an indictment for DUI manslaughter, under the assumption that the results will show that Stallworth’s blood alcohol content exceeded the legal limit of 0.08 percent when he collided with a pedestrian, who later died.

Per the source, Stallworth admitted to drinking at least four Patrons and two Margaritas. A separate source called that information “basically right,” but added that Stallworth contends he had his last drink at midnight. The incident occurred after 7:00 a.m. local time.

We’re also told that Stallworth claimed in his statement to police that he saw the man crossing the street from a distance, and flashed the high beams and honked the horn of the Bentley he was driving. Apparently, there’s an issue as to whether Stallworth could have taken evasive action because of a barrier along the median.

We’re told that Stallworth is badly shaken by the news that the pedestrian had died. And, frankly, he should be. Apart from the fact that he was involved in an accident that claimed a man’s life, Stallworth could be facing serious criminal liability, if the pending test reveals an impermissibly high concentration of alcohol in his blood.
So yeah, I don't think we're gonna see Stallworth on the field next season. Pretty sure the whole Roger Goodell suspending people for representing the NFL poorly thing will be in effect when it comes to the possibility of vehicular manslaughter. I wonder how much of the seven-year, $35 million he signed with the Browns, this deceased guy's family will sue for.

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