DUI Manslaughter. This is what Dante Stallworth is being charged with after he struck and killed a pedestrian crossing the street in Miami, Florida. Stallworth's attorney, Christopher Lyons, has stated that he will "vigorously" defend the case. As an attorney myself, I applaud Mr. Lyons' intentions, however, Stallworth doesn't have much of a defense.
For one, Stallworth's blood alcohol level of 0.12 has been officially confirmed by Miami police. And secondly, but just as important in a DUI manslaughter case, a death was a direct result of Stallworth's poor choice in driving under the influence of alcohol.
The defense will surely argue that the deceased pedestrian in this case attempted to illegally cross the street in some way, but in front of a jury, this defense will most certainly not be enough in a criminal case.
I suspect that Stallworth and his team of attorneys will try as hard as possible to enter into a plea deal, but prosecutors in Florida will be hard pressed to do so seeing that this case has already drawn a frenzy of media attention. If the Miami District Attorneys Office offers a plea deal to high profile NFL player, it will give the impression that money and status can keep anyone out of prison. The bottom line is, a human being was killed because of Stallworth's actions.
There's also the question of whether or not Stallworth will be allowed back in the NFL again. If Stallworth should be convicted of this crime, would Roger Goodell ban him for life? Maybe. But this isn't the first time we've seen something like this.
Remember Leonard Little? He was drafted in the 3rd round by the St. Louis Rams in 1998 and signed a three-year $1.2 million contract. Later that year, following a birthday party, Leonard got behind the wheel after consuming several drinks and killed a forty-seven year old woman. Leonard's blood alcohol level was 0.19. The state of Missouri's legal limit was .08. Little served 90 days in jail and received four years probation.
So how did the NFL handle Little's infractions?
He was suspended the first eight games of the 99' season and was back in the league as if his past was forgotten. In fact, in 2002, Little managed to ink a five-year $17.5 million contract with the Rams.
Back in 1999, Paul Tagliabue was commissioner and things were considerably less stringent in terms of league sanctions for off-the-field infractions. But in today's NFL, Roger Goodell has made it a point to harshly penalize those players who are unable to abide by the law.
While Stallworth's situation has a striking resemblence to Little's, Stallworth faces an uphill battle if he plans to play in the NFL again. Goodell's track record indicates that he will not be soft on Stallworth and a long, drawn out trial will only hurt him. I would not expect to see Stallworth on the playing field anytime soon.
