MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth will spend 30 days in jail for a DUI manslaughter that killed a construction worker in March under terms of a plea agreement, prosecutors said Tuesday.


The Cleveland Browns' Donte Stallworth can continue to play football, but his driver's license is revoked for life.

Stallworth, 28, pleaded guilty in a Florida court Tuesday to killing Mario Reyes while driving under the influence of alcohol, said Terry Chavez, spokeswoman for the Miami-Dade state attorney's office. He began serving his sentence immediately.

State attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle called the judgment "just" and said that Reyes' family supported the plea agreement. Stallworth cooperated with police and did not have a record of traffic violations or criminal convictions, she said in a news release.

"Although no sentence can ever restore Mr. Reyes to his family, the provisions of this plea will provide closure to them and appropriate punishment for Mr. Stallworth's conduct and the effects of his actions that night," she said.

After his release, Stallworth faces two years of house arrest, but he can still play professional football, Chavez said.



Stallworth's plea agreement also requires that he donate $2,500 to the activist group Mothers Against Drunk Driving. He will be on probation for eight years and must submit to random drug testing and drug and alcohol counseling for the entirety of his probation, Chavez said.

His license to drive was revoked for life.

Stallworth was driving his black Bentley GT east on the MacArthur Causeway, which connects Miami to the South Beach area of Miami Beach, when he struck Reyes, according to a prosecutor's statement. Stallworth told the arriving officer that he was the driver of the car and said, "I hit the man lying in the road," according to a court document.

Stallworth had been at a Miami Beach club earlier and had been drinking, according to court documents. The veteran NFL player's blood-alcohol level was 0.126, Chavez said. Florida's legal limit is 0.08. Reyes suffered "critical head, chest and abdominal injuries" and died at a hospital, according to court documents

He played the family off and they went along with it.

If I was the judge, I'd say, fuck this, you're doing hard time, son.

I have a friend who is currently in his 7th year of a 20 year sentence after killing 2 people while driving drunk in California. Stallworth should get at least ten years for his crime.

uPtoWnNY said:

These ballers NEVER seem 2 learn.

What the fuck? 2 STUPIS ASS THINGS HERE:

1 - 30 days for killing someone and ya ass was DRUNK on top of that? That's bullshit.

2 - Driver's license suspended for LIFE? That's fuckin' dumb! If he's gonna do the "time," why can't he be then eligible to get his license reinstated?

Just stupid ass-backwards shit all around.

Consider...

If he doesn't get to play football, then what does he offer in terms of money in a civil suit? He would have no job, and the Reyes family would be without a father AND no income.

The Reyes' are content with Stallworth's reget (who has to live with that on his conscience), and they will be getting financed to continue their live as best as they can without Mr Reyes.

Sad, but hopefully fair.

Graycap23 said:

Not just ballers, but everyone. I'm with Darwin, ten years for Stallworth. What's to stop him from doing this again? Didn't Leonard Little get caught driving drunk a second time?

I'm surprised the family went along with the plea, but that's their decision.

30 days?! People are getting the death penalty here in Cali!

uPtoWnNY said:

True but some can afford 2 hire a driver.

Dauphin said:

But consider this - if Stallworth was an average joe like us, don't you think the family would scream for justice?

Michael Vick does two years for killing dogs, and Stallworth gets a month? Does not compute.

uPtoWnNY said:

Vick on purpose, Stallworth.....semi accidental.

MuthaFunka said:

This is some bullshit. As for the suspended license wouldn't that only be in the state of Florida? He deserved much more time than this. Oh, well, money talks.

Graycap23 said:

Sorry, Baby Daddy #1, but he lost "accidental" status when he chose to drive drunk when something like this is ALWAYS a possibility when you do so.

I can't believe MADD is gonna be bought off for a measly $2500. I'm sure this is so they won't picket his games and shit.
[Edited 6/16/09 15:11pm]

SCNDLS said:

Nah, I think it's for driving anywhere.

MuthaFunka said:

Driver's licenses are issued by the state though.

SCNDLS said:

But it said he could never obtain a driver's license, that means anywhere in the U.S. Surely they wouldn't just say for Florida, because then all he'd have to do is move to another state and get a license.

MuthaFunka said:

But how can they prevent him from doing just that? I've never heard of a nationwide ban on getting a license. WTF? As long as you don't have any open warrants how can they stop another state from issuing a license.

uPtoWnNY said:

Thank you.

Graycap23 said:

Fuck that!!! You know damn well if you get behind the wheel drunk, you can kill somebody.

I live in Cleveland, Ohio, so this story has been all over the local papers and news here. I don't agree that Stallworth should be allowed to continue to play football, in light of the fact that he was irresponsible, drove while he was under the influence of alcohol, and because of it, he hit and killed someone. Accident or not, it is just not right. Also, only having to spend 30 days in jail is not right either. If someone else were to drive drunk and wind up hitting and killing someone, they would have to spend YEARS in jail as punishment for what they did. In my honest opinion, Stallworth got off WAY too easy.

Stallworth's lucky that pedestrian wasn't wearing a flea collar...

I dunno, maybe they should've made an example out of him, too...

SCNDLS said:

It has to be part of the plea bargain.

psychodelicide said:

Well, I'm not trippin' off him being able to still possibly play ball, I'm trippin' off the weak ass sentence!

MuthaFunka said:

Just Florida.
A Florida judge can't issue an order that covers the U.S.
He could be entered into a database that states have access to so they could check for such a ban. But it would be up to the issuing state to honor it.
It may mean he can't live in Florida because he can't drive there.

MuthaFunka said:

That have him agreeing not to seek a license elsewhere. But to send him to jail for driving somewhere other than Florida? Shaky. But it's enforceable if he agrees.

SUPRMAN said:

And this is one of the reasons why I hate law.

WR Stallworth pleads guilty, gets 30 days in jail

MIAMI (AP)—Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte’ Stallworth(notes) began serving a 30-day jail sentence Tuesday for killing a pedestrian while driving drunk in Florida, a punishment made possible by his cooperation with investigators and the fervent wish by the victim’s family to put the matter behind them.

Stallworth, 28, received the sentence after pleading guilty to a DUI manslaughter charge for striking and killing Mario Reyes while driving drunk March 14 in his black 2005 Bentley. The athlete also reached a confidential financial settlement with the family of the 59-year-old construction worker.

Without the plea deal, the DUI manslaughter conviction could have netted Stallworth 15 years in prison. After his release from jail, he must serve two years of house arrest and spend eight years on probation. The house arrest provisions will allow him to resume his football career, his attorney said.

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the league is reviewing the matter for possible disciplinary action. Stallworth could face suspension without pay for some games this year.

Leonard Little of the Rams pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter after he hit and killed a woman while driving drunk in 1998 and served an eight-game suspension, though the punishment was doled out when the league was a bit more lenient.

The Browns also said they were evaluating the situation, saying they were “very conscious of the seriousness of the charges” to which Stallworth pleaded guilty.

Stallworth’s attorney, Christopher Lyons, said the financial settlement was only one factor in the plea agreement. He noted that Stallworth stopped immediately after the accident, called 911 and submitted to roadside alcohol testing despite spending most of the night drinking at a swanky Miami Beach hotel.

“He acted like a man,” Lyons said. “He remained at the scene. He cooperated fully.”

Stallworth told Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Dennis Murphy that he hopes to get involved in drunken driving education programs.

“I accept full responsibility for this horrible tragedy,” said Stallworth, who was accompanied at the hearing by his parents, siblings and other supporters. “I will bear this burden for the rest of my life.”

Stallworth also must undergo drug and alcohol testing, will have a lifetime driver’s license suspension and must perform 1,000 hours of community service. Lyons said after five years, Stallworth could win approval for limited driving such as for employment.

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle echoed Lyons in citing Stallworth’s lack of previous criminal record, cooperation and willingness to accept responsibility as factors in the plea deal. Rundle also said the Reyes family—particularly the victim’s 15-year-old daughter—wanted the case resolved to avoid any more pain.

“For all of these reasons, a just resolution of this case has been reached,” Rundle said.

None of the Reyes family attended the hearing. Their attorney, Rodolfo Suarez, read a statement saying the family wants to “bring closure to this emotional and tragic event.” Suarez did not respond to an email seeking comment.

After a night drinking at a bar in Miami Beach’s Fountainebleau hotel, police said Stallworth hit Reyes, a construction crane operator who was rushing to catch a bus after finishing his shift around 7:15 a.m. Stallworth told police he flashed his lights in an attempt to warn Reyes, who was not in a crosswalk when he was struck.

Stallworth had a blood-alcohol level of .126 after the crash, well above Florida’s .08 limit. Stallworth stopped after the crash and immediately told officers he had hit Reyes. Police estimated Stallworth was driving about 50 mph in a 40 mph zone.

Stallworth signed a seven-year, $35 million contract with the Browns before last season but was injured much of the year. The California native and University of Tennessee college star has also played in the NFL for New England, Philadelphia and New Orleans.

The night before the crash, Stallworth earned a $4.5 million roster bonus from the Browns.

Thats about how much time Paris Hilton had
[Edited 6/17/09 3:07am]

MuthaFunka said:

I have to agree, the sentence that Stallworth received was pretty weak.