Stop Comparing Donte’s Sentence To Michael Vick’s
We’re two days removed from Donte’ Stallworth’s apostrophe-deficient plea deal with the state of Florida that saw the Cleveland Browns wide receiver cop to manslaughter in exchange for serving a whopping 30 days in jail. Personally, I’ve spent more time in jail on tours, visiting friends, and shooting my new adult film, Cops And Cradle Robbers 7, available at finer adult video stores near you.
Some of you are comparing Stallworth’s sentence to that of Michael Vick, who was sentenced to 23 months in federal court for orchestrating an interstate dogfighting ring which, while grotesquely inhumane, makes a lot more sense than anything the UFL has ever done. But let’s get a grip and do the math. Thirty days is pretty fair, when you consider the surrounding factors involved, and compare those factors to Vick’s proceedings:
The case against Stallworth was not a slam-dunk. Stallworth blew a 0.126 at the scene, minutes after he ran over Mario Reyes with his Bentley on March 14th, but wasn’t charged with DUI manslaughter until April. Why?
The big issue centered around a wrinkle in Florida’s DUI laws referred to as “causation,” meaning that if the drunk driver is involved in a crash, that driver is not necessarily responsible if the other party contributed to that crash. Like if I have get drunk and have sex with your mom, but she pays for the hotel room; I can’t be held responsible, unless of course your dad is bigger than I am (fat chance).
This applies to the case since Mario Reyes was jaywalking when Stallworth hit him. Reyes’ illegal action–petty as it is–could have potentially absolved Stallworth. There also would have been difficulty provinig that Stallworth was impaired, since he was able to honk and flash his lights. The prosecution might have had a better case if Stallworth was texting behind the wheel while sober.
And there’s probably a going-over-the-middle joke here that, due to time constraints, I’ll leave to the fine commenters of this site.
Conversely, the case against Vick was damn near iron clad. Several of Vick’s friends flipped and testified against him. Significant physical evidence, including 70 dogs, were seized. Investigators were confident that they could prove that Michael Vick was the de facto CEO of an interstate dogfighting operation that involved gambling, drugs, and the violations of both state and federal laws. It’s also worth nothing here that Virgina has suspended all charges against Vick, because they’re just mighty swell folks.
Stallworth made good with the Reyes family. I don’t know what happened here, but this is my best guess: A contrite Stallworth met with the family, apologized from the bottom of his heart, and pulled out his checkbook. He then gave Mario Reyes’ surviving wife and daughter more money than either of them had ever seen in their entire lives, enough to put that 15-year-old daughter through college. Enough for the widow to live “comfortably,” if such a term could even be used here.
The Reyes’ family’s wishes to get the proceedings over with may have stemmed from the settlement. The prosecution admitted that this was a factor in hurrying the proceedings, a factor that certainly worked in the favor of Stallworth and his legal team. No word on whether Vick and the survivors of the 70 dogs seized are cool.
Stallworth’s illegal action was not premeditated, and happened in less time than it took you to read this sentence. I hate using the word “accident” in general, but the fault stemmed from ann instantaneous lapse in awareness. Is that worth sending a guy to jail for years of his life? Is that fair? Vick, on the other hand, delivered the Bad Newz for six years. Oh, but he didn’t kill nobody and didn’t rape nobody. Whatever.
Legal proceedings aren’t as cut and dried as our society would like to pretend they are, and that’s a good thing. Alleged criminals don’t just walk up to a judge with their offense written on an index card and receive a cookie-cutter punishment like some sort of Value Meal of Justice.
The state’s burden of proof is one of the cornerstones of liberty in a republic. It doesn’t make the death of Mario Reyes forgivable, or any less tragic. It doesn’t diminish the value of the 59-year-old man that woke up every day to provide for his family. Stallworth had his day in court. So did Vick. But it wasn’t just random chance or some obliviousness to humanity that Stallworth’s day turn out a lot better.
Dick joke.
Tags: Cleveland Browns, Donte Stallworth, MMP, woulda been a lawyer if I hadn't bombed the LSAT
June 18th, 2009 at 9:29 am
I was waiting for a joke at the end involving some unspeakable sex act, but failing that, this post was still pretty much spot-on.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:34 am
Intelligent legal analysis? What’s going on here?
June 18th, 2009 at 9:34 am
Comparing the jail terms is the work of a re-tard. The prosecution brought the deal to Stallworth. Is he supposed to say no?
Someday we’ll live in the world where being black won’t be a crime. That day will come in March of 2109.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:35 am
I was looking for the weekly Fuck You column. Instead, I got an insightful look into a very sensitive and highly publicized social issue. Well done. Also pleased with the ’sex with your mother’ line in there to maintain the integrity of the KSK community.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:41 am
It still isn’t right that if anyone who isn’t rich whould have gone to jail for a little bit longer than 30 days. That’s great if Donte gave em enough money to set them up for life but that almost makes it worse. It says “I know you did this horrible thing but justice and freedom only cost 5 million bucks”. What’s that? You don’t have that much? Well, have fun getting shiv-fucked in prison Bitch!!! Wow he’s not as bad as Vick! Who Cares? That’s like saying someone isn’t as dumb as Ocho Cinco! Like that’s hard. I’m a total moron, but I’m still smater than Ocho. Y? CUZ I HAVE NO FACE TATOOS!!
June 18th, 2009 at 9:43 am
I have to say that I do think it’s bullshit that Stallworth ended somebody’s life and only got a month
I really think more needs to be done with “Value Meal of Justice.” There’s definite potential there.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:44 am
Good stuff.
But this makes no sense:
Stallworth committed his illegal action in less time than it took you to read this sentence.
Give me a good enough automatic weapon and I can gun down the entire KSK gay mafia in less time than it took you to read this sentence. Does that somehow make my killing spree less egregious?
June 18th, 2009 at 9:44 am
He should have gotten an extra 30 days for his hair and another 30 days for playing in Cleveland.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:50 am
In other news legal news from the world of sports, former MLB player Mel Hall was sentenced yesterday to 45 years in jail for raping a 12 year old girl.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Stallworth committed his illegal action in less time than it took you to read this sentence.
Leonard Little read that sentence twice.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:53 am
Sexy Friday came a day early!
/law fetish
June 18th, 2009 at 9:57 am
I gaurentee you that there would be a bigger stink about this if a white person had been run over.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:59 am
FozzieBear Says: “But this makes no sense:
Stallworth committed his illegal action in less time than it took you to read this sentence. ”
I think what Punte-Dawg is trying to say is that the circumstances that enabled the crime came and went within a mere five second-window of events. There was no intent. Stallworth went from “shit I gotta make it home without being pulled over” to “shit what the fuck is that guy doing?” to “SHIT WHY DIDN’T I STOP?” very, very quickly. Your “killing spree” has now been mentioned at 9:44 am June 18th, and therefore can be considered premeditation up to the time you do it.
Stallworth deserves a stiff punishment of some sort, but at the same time, considering how much it costs society to imprison someone, I don’t think it does any good to lock Stallworth up for more than, say, 6 months for something he really does wish he could take back, and not just because it cost him money. Unlike Vick, who only regrets getting caught, Stallworth (unless he’s a cold-hearted bastard in addition to being a fucking moron) regrets that he took a life even accidentally.
Donte’s sentence IS still too light but Vick deserves his jail time more.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:01 am
Upon hearing the sentence, Stallworth pulled his hamstring and will be in the IR through the duration of his jail time.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:04 am
How will this affect his fantasy football draft ranking?
June 18th, 2009 at 10:06 am
And remember: The judge factored in that he played for the Patriots and is not named Harrison, so he’s probably a nice, humble guy.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:06 am
@U.U…
He’ll probably have the same worthless season anyway.
Also, really? Mel Hall? Well, at least we know Kobe still doesn’t have anyone except Tyson to worry about on that “greatest rapists” list. Unless Roman Polanski pulls another “Chinatown” out of his ass.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:08 am
Haha Brandon. He has the choice of spending a month in jail, or spending a month in Cleveland with no football.
/Punchline
June 18th, 2009 at 10:08 am
porky1:
I know that, but killing without premeditation is still a serious crime. Sure, I had to buy a gun and carry it around in order to make it happen, but those things are legal and possibly legal depending on circumstances, respectively. Just as buying drinks and getting a car after those drinks are legal and possibly legal depending on circumstances, respectively.
The basic point is that the time it takes to commit a crime is irrelevant to the severity of the crime. If Cartman, Stan, Kyle and Kenny hatch a plan, over the course of an entire day, to cover their art teacher’s house with toilet paper and then develop an elaborate alibi, is that a worse crime than the time they burning their teacher alive and then blaming it on Trent Boyett, simply because the former took longer to commit and involved planning and premeditation?
June 18th, 2009 at 10:08 am
woulda been a lawyer if I hadn’t bombed the LSAT
I think Vick would have done better had he been represented by Punter, Panda, and DonkeyPorn LLC .
June 18th, 2009 at 10:10 am
I think the real takeaway from this is that Florida and its laws are retarded.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:10 am
Criminal law sentences almost always turn on the criminal’s state of mind: did he intend it? was he reckless?, etc. To me, that is the huge difference between the two. Vick knew what he was doing, and did it for a long time. Stallworth just made a stupid decision that night, and had an accident.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:10 am
Thank you for a rational argument- how many of us coudln’t have been in Donte’s shoes many times over? In my early 20s, I frequently would drive home plastered and recklessly (in Miami mostly as well). On more than one occassion, upon rising at 1 pm, I was sure that there woudl be bloodstains on my windshield, human skull-bits in my grill and a mangled Hispanic corpse in my trunk.
Conversely, albeit I don’t think there is anything wrong with dog-fighting, the fact that Vick was running a multi-million dollar illegal operation is the reason for his greater punishment. And also the reason VA wants to keep his future taxable income in-state.
In the NFL (even Florida) going over the middle and flopping at contact does not lead to gratuitious free kicks in the jimmies as in futbol.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:11 am
There also would have been difficulty provinig that Stallworth was impaired
Objectively: As I read the statute (FSA 316.193) it is a “per se DUI” law. That is, it is illegal to drive with a BAC above .08 (not merely a presumption of impairment) and actual intoxication or impairment does not have to be proven for a conviction.
Subjectively: 30 days for getting drunk by twice the legal limit and plowing over a pedestrian is by no means “pretty fair”.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:16 am
Let’s just pretend BoxFiend never wrote anything here, lest the PETA types get up in arms about his asinine stance on dogfighting.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:16 am
Just one more person the Steelers don’t have to fake worrying about lol. Whooo REPEAT!!!!
June 18th, 2009 at 10:17 am
@FozzieBear:
Dick joke.
Just kidding. Well, we can go back and forth. Instead I’ll just say, there is a fine line between an act of evil and an act of stupidity. Stallworth’s accident was a criminal act, but it was not the act of a criminal. That’s why he got off so relatively easy (too easy? Well, yeah.) But jail time for most criminals (except the truly hardcore) is supposed to be a process of rehabilitation. We don’t need to waste thousands of dollars of our tax money rehabbing this guy (or pot smokers) when the money could be going towards, uh…saving CitiBank?
June 18th, 2009 at 10:22 am
It pays to be rich… Life’s not fair… Get over it. Donte was in a position to make reconciliatory guestures to the family and save the State a ton of money by opening the checkbook and pleading guilty without a lot of fuss. He had the assets to make ammends in ways the rest of us couldn’t. The only thing the average Joe can give to the victims and the State is time. Unless you want to submit to the great communist revolution, then deal with it. Rich people can pay to get out of shitstorms.
I wonder how the prosecution landed at 30 days. Very convenient for not losing the entire NFL season. His ability to pay the victims and provide mentoring is based solely on his NFL career. I just wonder if the NFL was consulted on this. I have to think his legal team discussed the issue with the NFL office.
I think a 6 month sentence plus the 2 years House arrest and 10 years probation would’ve been appropriate.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:25 am
“30 days for getting drunk by twice the legal limit and plowing over a pedestrian”
This isn’t the first time I’ve heard people say it’s twice the legal limit. .126 is 50% over the limit of .08, not 2x.
That’s the difference between Saturday night club drinking and bachelor party drinking. Ok, not a huge difference, but still a difference.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:28 am
OK, I suck at math.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:30 am
I admit, I might not have the same grasp of both of these situations that some of you do, mostly because I largely don’t care. But-Isn’t one more huge difference in these cases the fact that Stallworth was facing stae charges and Vick was up against the GD entire government?
My limited understanding of federal proceedings goes like this: The Feds win. Like always. They don’t make deals, because they don’t f***ing have to. On the other hand, as the annoying Dennis Miller used to say, “The States can’t pave f***ing roads.” It’s a minor miracle they even charged Stallworth with anything.
June 18th, 2009 at 10:37 am
Flubby says: this is a travesty of justice (tag from previous post)
MMP says: thirty days is pretty fair, when you consider the surrounding factors involved
So do you two have a bitch slap session to see who wins this argument?
Seriously though, I understand a bit better why Vick got 23 months (interstate gambling, Federal charges, etc.). But still, how is that worse that killing someone? I know Reyes is partially responsible since he was crossing in the middle of the street and that Stallworth copped to the crime immediately and has shown genuine remorse. But 30 days basically says that if you have enough money and the family wishes for this to go away then you basically don’t have to be punished. Home confinement for him is not like he’s got to live in a trailer or the projects. Dude has a mansion and will be pretty comfortable with groceries being delivered to his spot.
/stunned at actual analysis this morning
//let’s resume the business of fetishes and dick jokes
June 18th, 2009 at 10:40 am
AP: One does get the feeling that the prosecution saw a slim but tangible chance that a drawn-out trial might backfire, leaving the victim’s family with no justice and less cheddar. Hitting Donte’s pocketbook before the shock wore off probably added $300,000 to the settlement right there.
Also, since the guy’s name was Reyes, it’s likely that the family had at least one or two Jesus freaks who were probably saying things to the daughter like “forgiveness is divine…and take the money for Christ’s sake.”
/half-Mexican, allowed to make the joke
June 18th, 2009 at 10:58 am
Your crux of your argument is worthless. Even if Stallworth did pony up a nice sum to the widow. He is only in the position to do this because he’s a star NFL player. How many guys who make $40000 a year, which is around the median income in America, or make even less than that, would have gotten this sentence for the exact same crime? NONE, no matter how contrite they are. I understand that his money made him able to help him come to terms with the family, and I can appreciate the action, but under the law he should be treated the same as the average guy making $40 grand and getting by month to month, as Vick was (at least more so than the majority of his peers seem to be treated). This post is a joke.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:06 am
But still, how is [dogfighting] worse that killing someone?
I never said it was worse. Somebody didn’t do his reading…
June 18th, 2009 at 11:10 am
Missy Giove, the agro mountain biker chick, just got pinched with a few hundred pounds of pot and is looking at 40 years. That’s a massive waste of resources, in several respects.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:13 am
Are the Vick/dog-fighting fans madder that he’s off the field and off the fantasy depth chart or that dog-fighting is a felony?
I suppose those are not mutually exclusive.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:19 am
Not a defense of Stallworth, but…some history.
If you grew up in America as late as the 1980s, you might not understand that DWI wasn’t uncommon or that big a deal, and the law was often unenforced. Until MADD started up for real(mid-to late 1980s), in New York up to .13 was generally allowed to plead down to impaired, the equivalent of a parking ticket.There were more than a few cases of cops pulling over a drunk, locking his keys in the trunk and getting him a cab.
Objectively few accidents happen to most people .15 and under, which is having 4 or 5 beers with dinner. Most DWI accidents involve people well above that. But again MADD went crazy and the feds felt the pressure and linked highway funding to DWI BAC and a drinking age of 21. And the insurance industry was happy to cut their risk and hike their rates.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:19 am
@disturban, she’ll be alright in prison they love lesbians there.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:20 am
“how many guys who make $40000 a year, which is around the median income in America, or make even less than that, would have gotten this sentence for the exact same crime? NONE.”
Two things:
1) you are just talking from your gut, and don’t really have anything to base your opinion on, AND
2) people keep talking about this sentence as though it were handed down from the judge. This was a plea agreement… and as MMP mentioned in the post, this wasn’t the most cut-and-dried case in the world. Because of that, the prosecutor wanted to deal (also factor in the lack of the record, standing in the community and all the other things he would factor in with us regular joes), and you get the light jail sentence, but you also get EIGHT years of probation. That probation is supposed to be a safeguard on repeat offenses, which, you know, I think is one of the main principles of the system. As opposed to like, bloodthirsty revenge.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:21 am
Thank you punter. Someone needed to be a voice of reason, and I guess you drew the short straw, but well done and well reasoned.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:22 am
but plaxico only harmed himself and no one else… realize that it’s a dumb argument and irrelevant to this post but still getting ready for it whenever his sentencing eventually comes out.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:23 am
@flubby, I was told there would be no math.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:23 am
So what’s the deal with that drunk Mexican kid being charged with 3 counts of murder for basically doing the same thing as Stallworth with that Angels pitcher? Oh yeah, it’s because he’s Mexican and killed white people. Now I get it.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:27 am
@gern well, i’m sure someone else might argue this better than me and i don’t agree with the stallworth sentencing either, but Gallo ran a red light and hit a car that was allowed to be in that intersection at the time. then he tried to flee the scene.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:27 am
I believe FL has the shoot first ask questions later policy, no?
June 18th, 2009 at 11:28 am
@UU – You should try for the conjugal visit, she’s in Smallbany.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:30 am
@Gern, you mean the Mexican kid with a suspended license from a previous drunk driving conviction?
June 18th, 2009 at 11:30 am
@lil wayne chrebet
One of the differences is that Plax has been offerred a 3month prison deal and has turned it down. The state of NY has a 3 year minimum sentence for concealed handgun.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:30 am
@Gern,
dude you are SO RIGHT, black defendents get it so easy in the U.S. courts.
You cracked the code, you sleuth, you!
June 18th, 2009 at 11:30 am
Man, Punte really mailed that dick joke in.
/like this comment
June 18th, 2009 at 11:32 am
@disturban, I’m in Albany yes aka Smallbany. Me trying to make a conjugal visit would be a waste of time, she’s not into dudes.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:37 am
@UU – Yes, as you mentioned.
But please, you live on this site. Have you learned nothing? When she falls off the wagon, you could be there. Or you could pick up her customer base. Just sayin’…
June 18th, 2009 at 11:39 am
@disturban, all good points. You are a wise man.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:43 am
He had the wherewithal to flash his lights and honk his horn, but not to actually hit the brakes or slow down when he saw a human being in his way. That’s what I can’t get over, and why 30 days seems like a complete joke. Yes, he manned up afterwards and cooperated fully. But it was a horrible decision at the time that seems to show no respect for another person’s life.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:47 am
I haven’t seen the actual statute, and I’m much too lazy to do so, but my guess is that the causation element constitutes a mitigating factor, and does not offer a complete defense. It’s similar to the distinction between pure and modified comparative liability in a civil claim. If that is the case, which it likely is, the DA would have had little problem proving his case, and the causation element would have been more pertinent to the sentencing phase. If it is a complete defense then I’m wrong, but if that were the case I highly doubt Stallworth would have pleaded at all. So this likely doesn’t have much to do with the law, and more to do with Stallworth’s ability to buy the Reyes family off.
Oh, and Gern, I’m not sure if you noticed, but Stallworth’s black. He got a sweet deal because of his money, not his color.
June 18th, 2009 at 11:50 am
Stop Comparing Donte’s Sentence To Michael Vick’s
*compares Donte’s sentence to Michael Vick’s*
WHAT YA GONNA DO ABOUT IT
June 18th, 2009 at 11:52 am
About 10 years ago my brother was killed in a car accident. Broadsided by a Chevy Suburban. According to the police report the accident was caused by driver error on my brother’s part. Having been to the intersection with said report in hand, its hard to argue with that conclusion. Perhaps the other driver could have been more alert and avoided nailing the driver side door, but I’ll never know. I do that within a year the other driver attempted suicide, which would be easy to pin on guilt over not being on point enough to avert the accident. But again, I don’t know that, so it’s useless speculation to me.
At first, I was hoping to hear that the other driver was drunk. I wanted to be able to replace the devastation with anger. But, even if the other driver was drunk it would not have changed the fact that my brother made a bad call that ended up killing him.
Sadly, Reyes did indeed contribute to his own demise by jaywalking on a major thoroughfare at an hour and in a neighborhood where it’s quite likely that drivers have had a couple drinks. Stallworth was illegally driving, owing to his BAC level. The place where the two meet was an accident, and that’s a big deal because intentionality matters here. The question is whether justice has been served. Stallworth has now been convicted of vehicular manslaughter, will serve time in jail, has made speedy restitution to the victim’s family, kept the state’s court expenses to a minimum, reduced the legal team’s billing hours, and reduced the amount of time ESPN will spend covering the trial. On a personal note, dealing quickly and contritely with the victim’s family is a huge deal – dragging them through a protracted court battle would have been a Deke sized middle finger to them.
What is the point of the justice system? If Stallworth never drives drunk again and honestly devotes his energy to the mentoring programs, then we can say he’s been rehabilitated. We won’t know that answer for years. The family is being made as whole as can be given the situation. Everything appears to have been handled in an upfront manner. I’m not sure about the accusation some people have made that this is indicative of a separate justice system for the wealthy. It’s important to note that Stallworth is pleading guilty. He won’t have a margin for error in the justice system ever again. I’m of the opinion that because he’s plead guilty, will serve some time, and has made restitution to the family, that for now justice is on top.
If he fails to change his behavior, he should be shown no mercy at all.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
“What is the point of the justice system?”
A question too few of those involved in the justice system stop,step back and ask.
Sorry for your loss.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
This whole post is incredibly retarded.
“Stop Comparing Donte’s Sentence To Michael Vick’s” – Wait. Do you mean everyone should stop the comparisons as soon as they finish reading this post? Because it seems like the only reason you’re discussing Stallworth’s plea bargain is to compare it to Vick’s plea bargain. Are you trying to get an internship with Peter King?
“The case against Stallworth was not a slam-dunk.” – Unless Reyes waited and jumped into the street, which is possible, the case against Stallworth was a slam dunk. Stallworth told the cops he had time to flash his lights and honk his horn. So he saw the guy and then ran him over anyway. The statute says you’re guilty if you caused or contributed to causing the death of a person when driving while impaired. It doesn’t matter if Reyes was jaywalking unless the accident was unavoidable. It’s not as if you get to run over jaywalkers when you’re sober.
“Stallworth committed his illegal action, with no intentions of doing so, in less time than it took you to read this sentence.” This sentence is so retarded it deserves some sort of monument. Stallworth got drunk and intentionally drove his car. Drunk drivers rarely kill other people on purpose, much less slowly.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:23 pm
Well said punter. I only have one disagreement with your arguement.
My Dad is black so clearly he’s bigger than you.
Other than that,I’m glad someone saw the small details that made Stallworth’s situation way different than Vick’s.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Aren’t all famous people given one free negligent homicide/manslaughter? Cause, you know, shit happens. You get drunk and run someone over, the groupie stops breathing after some light choking, etc. Being rich and famous is stressful, you gotta grade on a curve here.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
Your Honor, all that being said, he should have still gotten more time for a) being dumb enough to sign with the Browns b) pissing away his signing bonus on a Bentley instead of paying his babies momma’s and c) being a major douche, I’m talking Boston sized douche.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:26 pm
I agree with Punter in the sense that comparing this case to Vick’s is stupid and lazy.
However, I still think Stallworth’s ’sentence’ was bullshit. And it’s not just this case, it’s the slap-on-the-wrist drunk driving laws in the country as a whole. There isn’t enough of a deterrent to doing something that puts lives in danger every single time you do it. If I’m a rich asshole, and I see some other rich asshole get hammered and kill someone while driving, is this really doing anything to stop me from driving drunk now? 3 weeks in jail and a check that he’ll earn back in six months? I’m shaking in my thousand-dollar boots. This country’s justice system needs to stop putting its collective head in the sand about something this fucking dangerous.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Interesting take, but wrong on several levels. Drunk driving IS a premediated crime. The act of hitting someone isn’t premeditated, obviously, but that’s part of the reason DD is categorically prohibited: Because of the impairment, you’re less likely to realize you’re about to run someone over, therefore you shouldnt be driving in the first place. Knowingly getting behind the wheel in that condition starts the offense, and it was most certainly an intentional act on his part.
As for the civil settlement, sorry, but you can’t (or shouldn’t be able to) buy lenient criminal sentencing with generous civil compensation. In theory, the one should have nothing to do with the other. And the contributory negligence point you mention in the criminal context actually has only limited application under Florida civil law, so his writing the check wasn’t just a magnanimous act: he was going to be on the hook for that anyway.
30 days is ridiculous, and will just encourage more drunk athletes to drive their Bentleys at 90 MPH down Atlantic Blvd.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
I understand the mitigating circumstances, and I understand that, given the flimsiness of the case, this may have been the smartest move by the prosecutor. However, those factors don’t lessen my anger at a system that allows someone to kill someone else and get 30 days. And while the circumstances are certainly different for this case than for Vick’s, I don’t feel bad being angry at the difference in the amount of jail time, and here’s why:
Say what you will about the differences between state and federal charges, the lying, or the lack of remorse. My (unprovable but firm) belief is that he’d have faced less trouble if not for the public outrage surrounding the incident. Public opinion, fueled in part by the media, played a role in the severity of the case brought against Vick. Why is there more public outrage about killing dogs than about killing people? Yes, he was charged with running a criminal enterprise across state lines, but the outrage was about the dogs, not about shit like tax evasion.
Further, I’d argue that less fatalities due to drunk driving would occur if people were less nonchalant about drunk driving in general. Sure, Stallworth may never drive drunk again as a result of this incident, but how many people have been sent an unconscious message that drunk driving isn’t a big deal as a result of this plea agreement?
I don’t pretend to be unbiased about this issue. My grandmother was killed by a drunk driver ten years ago, and her killer was just recently released from prison. This one hits close to home for me.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
Does anyone know how long it had been since he had his last drink? Was she drinking straight through the night or did he sleep it off and think he was okay to drive in the morning?
My initial thought was that the guy was out partying on Ocean Drive all evening and found a place to crash for the night instead of driving drunk in the middle of the night, he gets up at 7:00ish and figures he did the right thing and thinks he has sobered up. Not realizing that he is still over the legal limit, he drives home.
If this is the case, can we at least give him some credit? It’s not like he walked out of the club drunk and jumped in his car.
June 18th, 2009 at 12:40 pm
Who are you and what have you done with KSK?
June 18th, 2009 at 12:43 pm
I don’t know about you, but when I’m driving drunk I don’t flick my lights at people crossing the street in front of me when they shouldn’t… I slam on the horn and swerve around them while cursing them out the window. What was with the flashing of the lights?
June 18th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
what CockFlashy said. and also what the other 2 lawyers said in the comments yesterday.
good post Punte – u inspired perhaps the most intelligent discussion ever seen on this site
/way too lazy to research FL law or the facts of the Stallworth case to make a substantive comment on the application of the law
June 18th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
Salute.
Some people will just never be able grasp concepts like “causation” and “contributory negligence” (limited to civil cases).
All they see is that someone got killed, someone else did the killing and that person was drunk. QED.
Makes for good talk radio and poor administration of justice. Which is a large part of why we’re so fucked up as a nation right now. If you can’t say it in five single syllable words or less, it must not be worth hearing.
Aaaaand, dickjoke.
June 18th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
Thanks for explaining that the difference in outcome is not the result of people/the Courts/the system/the man/PETA valuing dogs over people. There are a lot of retards with internet access screaming about that.
June 18th, 2009 at 1:06 pm
The argument you’re advancing certainly applies to the courtroom. But when it comes to the league, it certainly says something when there is more question about whether Vick will be allowed back in than Stallworth or Little.
June 18th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
MMP: but now you can say you played a lawyer on the internets!
If the family involved is able to accept the outcome, then I will side with them.
But some others made good points that our system of drunk driving laws still have a ways to go before the sentence fits the crime in many cases.
June 18th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
Stallworth got off way to easy and I hope his playing career suffers, I hope he can’t sleep and I hope he thinks about killing himself while walloing in remorse.
I also hope Goodell suspends him for more than 8 games (which is how much Little did for his “accident”).
So the majority of commenter’s on this site feel that dogs are worth more than black men? Vick should do two years for a bunch of dogs while Stallworth only does 30 days for killing a person?
It’s just not right.
June 18th, 2009 at 1:45 pm
hey brandon, you’re a dumb ass. being black isn’t a crime, and has nothing to do w/ vick or stalworths jail time. also this whole post is based on a straw man. sweet!
June 18th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Or, Stallworth had really good lawyers. I think that covers it. I sat in on the deportation of a guy who got 260 months for possession of marijuana and cocaine yesterday- and he pled guilty. It’s safe to say he had an awful lawyer. It’s all about how much you can pay for your defense.
-I’d say you had something with the contribution stuff/jaywalking, but this is a criminal case. It’s a good reason to take the settlement, not a good reason not to prosecute. Seriously, hats off to Donte’s legal team.
That said, he’s a first time offender, and really I think this at least sets an example of the prosecution not just making an example of him because he’s famous, so that’s nice.
June 18th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
i never seeked to compare the two….and previously, i wouldn’t dignify such an attempt with a response
however, one judgement simply has to deal with how the system (aka the Corporation) comes down on anyone making $ without it making it’s substantial cut (much like alcohol prohibition versus today
the other dealt with the reality of the value of life versus the value of the dollar (any of you not worth millions think you’d be offered the possibility to enjoy said “loophole”?)
& everyone better do some more research cause the Reyes family wasn’t the only family that got paid…the other is the mob family called the legal system
much the same reason Jason “damn globetrotters I just shot that limo driver in the chest…lets go get some pizza!” Williams is still free pending judgement…cause a $100 million prior NBA contract can buy you that leeway
I have a hard time believing this would seem just or fair to anyone here if they just lost their spouse to a driver (sober or not) because they jaywalked
after all a good jaywalk is like a good three punch combo to the woman u love when she brings your eggs back over easy when she knows you like ‘em sunny-side up….everyone does it
bitch.slap.
June 18th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
What is the point of prison?
To keep someone away from society to protect us from them? If this is case, it would be because he can’t stop himself from drinking and driving. Apparently the prosecuters did not feel that this was a risk.
To teach someone a lesson? I would think that a lesson has already been learned with a settlement and some jail time.
For revenge? This person made a mistake, which was compounded by a mistake that the victim made.
If he had swerved to miss the guy and plowed into a person on the side of the road, would you demand a long term sentence? Because in my mind, it is pretty much the same thing.
June 18th, 2009 at 2:29 pm
BMsuppercut…Just because eeveryone does something they perceive as low risk, doesn’t mean that it is riskless.
If Stallworth is not drunk, we say it is the jaywalkers fault and a terrble tragedy.
June 18th, 2009 at 2:41 pm
Very good comments for the most part.
I do agree that the comparison of Vick to Donte is unwarranted as they are different jurisdictions, different legal systems (federal v. state) and wholly different circumstances.
“Some people will just never be able grasp concepts like “causation” and “contributory negligence” (limited to civil cases). ”
As an evil tort lawyer for several years, I fully grasp these concepts thank you very much.
Still, my PERSONAL feeling is that, under general standards of justice, that 30 days is a very small sentence, yes even after considering the circumstances. Should he have gotten 15 years? Heavens no. It is up to the prosecution and the judge to make the determination, but I am highly suspicious that any other random person in the EXACT same circumstances, would only serve 30 days, even with a settlement.
I am convinced, yes with no real evidence, that someone else would have received at least 2-3 years hard time. I know people who were “innocent” patrons in a silly bar fight and received 45 days in jail, with no criminal history, and several years probation (not my clients!). Is this relevant? Maybe not. However, the jurisdiction and judge you pull are actually very important, otherwise defendants wouldn’t forum shop and remove cases all of the time.
I can’t find this mysterious “causation” clause within the statutes as 316.119 does not exist. Perhaps it is within the common law or repealed and amended as a new statute, but I don’t have free access to the reports. However, here is the duty of the driver with respect to jaywalkers (316.130):
“(15) Notwithstanding other provisions of this chapter, every driver of a vehicle shall exercise due care to avoid colliding with any pedestrian or any person propelling a human-powered vehicle and give warning when necessary and exercise proper precaution upon observing any child or any obviously confused or incapacitated person. ”
I’ve never practiced criminal law, but AFAIK, hitting people when drunk driving, in most states, is at least criminally negligent, and yes the horrible crime of jaywalking is to be considered, but driving a large machine while intoxicated should place a higher duty of care on that person. Absent the intoxicated man jumping right in front of the vehicle (which I do not know), I don’t see how Donte could not have seen him, unless he was drunk and had slow reflexes. You also have a duty as a driver to drive more defensively at night as, I would argue, drunk jaywalkers should be reasonably foreseeable in that part of town at that time. But that is the civil lawyer in me saying that. Still, if they are going to apply fuzzy “comparative negligence” and “proximate cause” standards in certain criminal cases, they should apply duty of care standards as well.
Perhaps Ape is right that Florida has “dumb laws”, but, as an officer of the court, my personal feelings are left aside and, ultimately, I respect the laws as they are and expect them to be followed. If you don’t like it I suppose you could lobby the Florida legislature to curb the comparative negligence standard as an outraged citizen.
But I surmise that will never happen and, yet, the world keeps turning….
/i apologize for the long comment but I hope it is useful, even if not free from debate
June 18th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
I apologize, the accident happened in the morning, not at night as I assumed.
June 18th, 2009 at 2:49 pm
“Lost InTheOffice”
yeah, that’s the same thing i say when i see those damn over-easy eggs…right after my right cross
i think it’s all too subjective to discuss objectively. These cases will always depend on power and the ability to propel yourself to said loophole or generate the proper “spin”
we can also argue that if the average (sober) Joe pedestrian plows a famous/powerful person that said Joe might not enjoy the benifits of the nuance between perceived low and agreed-upon high risk and would stand a very high probability chance of doing the minimum
June 18th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
The family of the victim took a financial settlement that will likely change their lives forever. If you were 59 and bought it running across a street, wouldn’t you down from the Grid Iron in the sky and choose that cash settlement for your family over locking away a seemingly contrite NFL player?
June 18th, 2009 at 2:58 pm
I gaurentee you that there would be a bigger stink about this if a white person had been run over.
well that is because whites a worth more. Florida law.
June 18th, 2009 at 3:12 pm
Coming this summer! “In a world where hands matter…sort of….Donte’ Stallworth stars in
“DeathRace 2009: Doin’ it Dirty South Style”
Sample cuts:
DS: Don’t throw me the keys, HAND them to me
DS: i like my cars like I like my WR’s. Fast and unresponsive in the clutch
DS: two men enter, two men leave. one under the chassis of a Bentley
it demans Edgerrrn James as his arch enemy
I smell sequel…and merchandise!!
June 18th, 2009 at 3:12 pm
Yeah poor Stallworth to have put himself in that unavoidable, accidental situation. It must have been so incredibly difficult for that millionaire athlete to get a ride home from a friend or a taxi driver or a limo driver or whoever. I have no respect for people who drink and drive, and so even with the circumstances factored in, thirty days is way too little time. As a college student, I’ve gotten drunk plenty of times, but I have always either gotten a ride back to the dorms or just stayed at my frat house for the night.
A good friend of my mother made a terrible mistake: robbing a bank, an act of desperation. She was sincerely apologetic, she learned her lesson, cooperated with police, and pled guilty, but she still got three years in jail. Now one may say it’s not fair to compare these two scenarios. Why not? I didn’t really see a good reason laid out in MMP’s post, and while I only skimmed the comments, I didn’t see a good reason in there either. I think it’s bullshit that a working poor woman who showed the same level of contrition as Stallworth got three years for a lesser crime when Stallworth got thirty days.
Now obviously, like when comparing the Vick case to the Stallworth case, there is a major difference, that being that my mother’s friend was pretty much fucked. I am not necessarily advocating a lesser sentence for her but for a longer sentence for Stallworth. Being sorry and cooperating doesn’t mean that he should get off with a slap on the wrist for KILLING A MAN, and I’m with those asshole mainstream media commentators calling for Goodell to suspend Stallworth for the entire season.
June 18th, 2009 at 3:18 pm
Spencer, the bottom line is the bottom line… The poor woman in your scenario didn’t pay the victim a large $$$ settlement. Stallworth paid the victim’s family to ask for a lenient sentence. Is it fair, no.
June 18th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
As a friend of mine, the pre-law advisor where I teach says, the law is legal; it’s not fair. Don’t confuse the two.
June 18th, 2009 at 3:46 pm
“joe Says: hey brandon, you’re a dumb ass. being black isn’t a crime, and has nothing to do w/ vick or stalworths jail time. also this whole post is based on a straw man. sweet!”
I wish Joe had linked a website. I’d love to hear more of his insights into the human condition.
June 18th, 2009 at 3:47 pm
A few things to add.
Do I think it is fair? Not really.
Do I think it was a bad decision? Nope, I think it is fine.
1) Stop talking like this was a “street” and he was jaywalking. It is a fucking HIGHWAY with a four foot HIGH median in the middle separating traffic. My friend used to live down there and said there is no way in hell he’d try to cross in the day, let alone at night/dawn.
2) We were not there. Stop going…well Stallworth could have just swerved around…there could have been a car boxing him in. He also could have been thinking, “wtf is that in the road..**flicks lights**….HOLY SHIT! And then hits the guy. This isn’t really a normal place to cross, and you really shouldn’t expect someone there.
3) This isn’t the Vick case, of course the mainstream media are fucking retards and this is all they will talk about for a week.
4) Stallworth maned up about it, met with the family, he didn’t fucking pull a Lance Briggs and abandon the car and run. He was shaken up at the scene. He wasn’t scrapping the guy off and screaming peasant at him.
5) I LOOOOOVE the FAUX outrage from the talking heads and some people. OH MY GOODNESS HE GOT A GOOD DEAL BECAUSE HE IS RICH! Of COURSE HE fucking did! Not to say you couldn’t have gotten off with an ok sentence, but the surprise that rich people get away with shit is amusing. Drugs/DUI’s whatever. We all know this, big surprise, but the crappy attempt to get people outraged is silly.
6) The act of people as if this is the FIRST time something like this has happened! Hey, what about Reggie Rogers, that first round draft pick for Detroit? The one who killed three people, only got 14 months (STILL LESS THAN VICK) and has had 5 DUI’s after and still has a license. This guy was so drunk he couldn’t stand, and started calling for his college coach when the cops arrested him.
7) Hey, what about this case that happened right around where I live, Orlando, Florida. Ashley Townsend runs down two kids IN A CROSSWALK while running a red light. This isn’t just two kids, one is in a stroller, one is walking next to it, and the mother is pushing it. She blows through the light, two kids die, the bodies are something like 100 feet away. She pleads guilty to two counts of vehicular homicide, and got 20 days (because of gained time off of her 30 days). Reportedly her daddy had connections up in Tally, and that played in the sentencing. They even changed the date of the hearing so the local media wouldn’t find out. Basically it was an “accident” and she wants to be a teacher so clearly she loves kids and shit, and sunshine, and she is such a nice person and this was just a bad day or something like that. Could have gotten 18 1/2 years.
Yea, if it was me, it’d be my ass in prison for at least a decade.
So yea, the Super-rich, the well-connected, (whites most of the time) and girls get off easy in the justice system. What a revelation.
June 18th, 2009 at 5:06 pm
What would be really interesting to hear is what all the people, who are trying to show off their law e-peen or justify Stallworth’s sentence in any way, would really be saying if this had happened to one of their loved ones. A child/GF/BF/spouse/parent/whatever is crossing the street, in a jaywalking situation, and is wiped off the face of the earth by a drunk driver who is also speeding. I’m sure you would all walk up to the guy, accept his apology and tell him you hope he only gets 30 days in jail. BULL-FUCKING-SHIT.
Any law or procedure that allows a drunk driver, much less one that was speeding, to walk away from killing someone with only 30 days is a worthless fucking one no matter how you try to justify it.
June 18th, 2009 at 5:13 pm
This is not crossing the street in mayberry, this is a fucking highway where you have to JUMP a wall to cross the fucking road.
June 18th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
The family also gets 5k because of the PIP death benefit. I know this b/c its my job.
June 18th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
This is the most well-written article on the net regarding these two dipshitz. Hands down.
June 18th, 2009 at 5:57 pm
FUCK THEM FUNKY ASS DOGS!
LET VICK PLAY!
June 18th, 2009 at 6:08 pm
“This is not crossing the street in mayberry, this is a fucking highway where you have to JUMP a wall to cross the fucking road.”
I don’t give a rat’s ass where it happened. Stallworth willingly operated a vehicle while drunk. If this Reyes individual left a suicide note and then jumped in front of the vehicle…then 30 days for drunk driving might be a little more palatable sentence.
June 18th, 2009 at 6:13 pm
He operated a vehicle under the influence and killed someone. Nothing he did afterward justifies this joke of a sentence.
I hope Goodell breaks his foot off in Stallworth’s ass.
Great analysis, nonetheless.
June 18th, 2009 at 9:13 pm
You had me at “15-year-old daughter.”
June 18th, 2009 at 9:40 pm
If I wanted intelligent, reasonable, & factual I’d be watching Fox News.
June 19th, 2009 at 4:32 am
Still, if I happen to do what Stallworth did, I am completely fucked for life.
June 19th, 2009 at 4:34 am
But I agree, nice well-written article. You guys know your shit.
June 19th, 2009 at 12:28 pm
Calm down Ismael. The dude that Stallworth killed was Mexican not black. Why do you have to play the black/white card? Either way a man is dead and that piece of shit Stallworth got off easy.
June 19th, 2009 at 10:51 pm
agreed the florida laws are fucked. i don’t believe stallworth did anything maliciously, but 30 days for running someone over and killing them seems a little light
http://worldisretarded.blogspot.com/
June 20th, 2009 at 12:02 pm
YOUR A BIGGER ASS THAN STALWORTH. HE HAD ALL THAT TIME TO DO EVERYTHING THAN WHY DID HE HIT HIM ?
YOUR ASS SHOULD BE PUT IN JAIL WITH HIM. HE BOUGHT THE JUDGE EVERYONE KNOWS THAT . SEE WHAT THE NFL
DOES ABOUT THIS . THAN YOUR ASS CAN DEFEND THAT
June 20th, 2009 at 4:33 pm
its because of these stupid ass animal activasit learned little n ray lewis have killed HUMANS and go back to the NFL but Vick kills a dog and its UNACCEPTABLE WTF…..its seems that our society would rather have a person hung and have them box and MMA but it happens 2 a dog and ohhh no its so bad….GTFO!!!! I C I KAN Kill people jus not animals…..you blood throwing vegaterians losers did this you fuckiennenn losers
June 20th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
Bullshit.Any piece of shit who gets behind the wheel of car after he has been drinking should be taken out back and shot in the head.Donte Stallworth is trash,plain and fucking simple,who got slapped on the wrist becaus he threw some money to the victim’s family,and because of who he is.Fuck him,and fuck you for condoning his murderous ass.
June 20th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
I largely buy that argument. After all, Stallworth apologized and made things as right as could be expected for the survivors. However, I think it’s unfair to say that it was a momentary lapse of awareness. He was drinking beforehand, and he knew that driving drunk puts people in danger. Other people.
Yeah, fine, the criminal justice system is there to rehabilitate not to mete out horrible inhumane punishment. The comparison is still invalid, and all your other points stand. But he knew what he was doing when he turned the key in his ignition.
June 20th, 2009 at 9:05 pm
some people talking of him drinking and driving…which is really no different than driving while texting or on the cell phone or some other distraction (if you believe those “studies”). or excessive speeding…not the same but still breaking the law and possibly putting other people in danger on the road
looking at the 2 options
1) 30 days in jail. 8 years probation. 1000 hours of community services. lifetime suspension of driver’s license. victim’s family makes big money.
2) 2-10 years in jail after a jury trial (which the victim’s family did no want)
While on the surface #2 seems more fair, I think #1 is the best option for everyone involved (Donte, victim’s family, state of Florida) and is what the victim’s family wanted. I dont think the victim’s family or society is better off with Donte being in jail for a long period of time.
and money changes everything. if Donte didnt have it he’d be in jail a lot longer. so start saving those coins…
June 22nd, 2009 at 3:16 pm
Does this mean Donté’´’ missed Brady Quinn day? HE MISSED THE GODDESS!! That’s punishment enough.
June 22nd, 2009 at 11:29 pm
Yeah, he missed out on Cockensparger throwing herself at Gaydy Quinn.
June 23rd, 2009 at 2:43 am
A for effort mmp. But goddam: 30 days real time for killing a husband and father? Since when did jaywalking become a capital offense in the Sunshine State? I’m licensed to practice law there, and I don’t remember that on the bar review. I understand mitigating circumstances and all. I also appreciate that we’re getting to the point where an NFL gig has the same tenure and due process ramifications as civil service or union membership. But goddam: Getting drunk and running a man down in the road like one of Vick’s escaped hounds should equate to something more – even in benighted FL – than an interval twice as long as most Americans can sustain a diet or do without cable. There’s law (what’s in the books), and there’s equity (what’s right). To look at the disparate circumstances between the offender and the victim is to understand how the prosecutorial powers derived their decision. Nothing in that calculus can rightly be called equitable. Donte Stallworth positively skated because of who he is, both individually and by lineage. And everything I know about our criminal justice system tells me that’s not right.
But goddam these are strange days.
June 28th, 2009 at 10:16 am
a lot of you fucktards are missing a huge point here. if stallworth isnt drunk at all, it isnt his fault, he’s never charged, the family is left in shambles b/c their patriarch was stupid enough to try and run across MACAURTHUR FUCKING CAUSEWAY (a highway you’re not allowed to ride your bike on let alone banned for pedestrian traffic. If donte is sober this is a non story. he’d never be charged, itd never be his fault, and a family would be shattered b/c their father/husband/brother/son thought itd be a good idea to sprint across a highway who’s speed limit is 55 mph. im not condoning donte’s actions, nor am i cool with his sentence (if it was any of us we’d be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law), but all of you on your high horses need to realize that not everything is black and white there are shades of gray in all aspects of life. in a way, for reyes’ family, its better stallworth was drunk. if he hadnt been theyd have lost a member of their family due to his own asinine actions(reyes). however, b/c stallworth was drunk they get a semblance of justice. they get a monetary settlement that absolutely wont make up for the loss of a loved one but definitely makes their lives, and their standard of living, much better than they ever were when reyes was alive. so yes his light sentence is bullshit and highlights the widening gap between average americans and wealthy/famous/connected americans when it comes to being put through our justice system but the end result of this situation is most certainly better for all involved (except stallworth) because he was drunk. if donte had been sober that morning a family would be left irrevocably broken with no recourse to attempt to gain any measure of wholeness again (a lawsuit would most certainly have been tenuous given the restrictions of pedestrian traffic on that road, reyes was also committing a crime, he was jaywalking) and donte would be worried about getting his bentley fixed. so some of you should think of that before you go comparing donte to leonard little or railing against our justice system. if you truly care about the affected family in this case then you should be happy stallworth was drunk because this wouldve played out the same if he was sober, he still would’ve hit the man with his car. the man still would’ve died.