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[mgoose316]

Former Nebraska Star Phillips Gets 10 years in Jail

LOS ANGELES (AP)—Former football star Lawrence Phillips was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison, two years after he was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon.

The sentencing was repeatedly delayed while Phillips fought to withdraw a guilty plea in a domestic abuse case that could have led to a stiffer sentence.

Phillips was convicted in 2006 of seven counts of assault with a deadly weapon.

The 33-year-old former Nebraska running back has been jailed since August 2005, when he drove onto a field near Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and his car struck three boys, ages 14 and 15, and a 19-year-old man, who suffered cuts and bruises. The car narrowly missed three other people, prosecutor Todd Hicks said.

Phillips was allegedly upset after losing a pickup football game to the youths and accused them of stealing some of his possessions.

“When he gets angry and he feels disrespected, he acts out with blind rage,” Hicks said in a telephone interview after the sentencing.

In court, Phillips tearfully apologized to one of the victims.

“I’m sorry that your leg is messed up,” Phillips told Rodney Flores, after hearing the young man tell the court that he was unable to pursue his dream of playing high school sports as a result of being hit when he was 16.

“I’m sorry you have to come in here like this,” Phillips said, adding that he “wanted the chance to say I didn’t mean to hurt people.”

Superior Court Judge George G. Lomeli said Phillips should have thought about what he did.

A call to Phillips’ attorney Leslie Ringold was not immediately returned.

Sentencing was delayed while Phillips tried to withdraw a 2000 guilty plea to hitting a woman he had been dating during a confrontation at the Beverly Hills Hotel, the prosecutor said.

The plea stands as a strike against Phillips under California’s “three-strikes” law, which mandates tougher sentences for repeat offenders.

Phillips contended he was coerced into pleading guilty to domestic abuse and making a criminal threat, resulting in a brief prison term and three years of probation.

His attempts to withdraw the plea are continuing, Hicks said.

The St. Louis Rams released Phillips for insubordination in 1997. He signed with the Miami Dolphins, but was later released. In 1999 in NFL Europe, he set league records for rushing and touchdowns with the Barcelona Dragons.

He signed with the San Francisco 49ers later that year, but was released for missing a practice. He also has played in the Canadian Football League.
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Arrest Warrant Issued for Mets Pitcher

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP)—An arrest warrant was issued Friday for New York Mets pitcher Ambiorix Burgos on charges stemming from a hit-and-run accident that killed two women.

Burgos is accused of abandoning the victims and fleeing, charges that can carry six months to two years in prison, Prosecutor Raul Quiroz told The Associated Press.

“We recommend that Mr. Burgos turn himself in so we can start the judicial process,” Quiroz said.

The SUV registered to the reliever struck pedestrians Josefina Minaya Martinez, 38, and Angely Fana, 29, on Tuesday in the town of Nagua, north of the Dominican capital, according to police. The victims later died at a hospital.

Police said witnesses told them Burgos was the driver, even though his cousin Edwin Silvestre Sanchez claimed to be behind the wheel.

Sanchez was released from police custody Friday, but he still could face charges as a possible accomplice, Quiroz said.

Quiroz said Burgos was recently arrested on an unrelated charge of illegal weapon possession, and released after posting a US$3,000 bond.

Burgos also was arrested last month in New York on assault and harassment charges after allegedly throwing his girlfriend to the ground. He has appeared in court on those charges but did not enter a plea, according to prosecutors. He’s due in U.S. court again Oct. 23 and faces up to a year in jail if convicted of the more serious misdemeanor assault charge.

The 24-year-old Burgos has not appeared in the major leagues since last year and spent the past season on the disabled list following elbow ligament replacement surgery. He pitched in the minors last month while on a rehabilitation assignment.
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[mgoose316]

Ref Only One Caught in Betting Scam

NEW YORK (AP)—Tim Donaghy is in prison, and David Stern doesn’t want anyone else in the NBA to get in trouble because of gambling.

So Stern responded to a report on NBA referees Thursday by vowing to build the “most effective possible system” to monitor illegal activity and preserve the game’s integrity.

“The best we can do is do the best we can, and that’s all we can do. And if I spoke of confidence, I would be exaggerating,” Stern said on a conference call. “The only thing I’m confident of is that if there’s anything intelligent to be done by the sports league, that will be in the first rank of rules and procedures and analyses.”

The commissioner ordered the investigation last August after former referee Donaghy was accused of betting on games he officiated and providing inside information to gambling associates to win their bets. Donaghy began serving a 15-month sentence on Sept. 23 at a federal prison in Pensacola, Fla.

Stern promised to implement all the recommendations included in former federal prosecutor Lawrence Pedowitz’s review of the NBA’s referees operations department, the result of a 14-month probe that cost the league several million dollars.

“We will be up there with the very best. No one will have a better system than we do,” Stern said. “But all of that said, to the idea that, you know, criminal activity will exist every place else in the world except in sports is just something that we can’t guarantee. But we’re going to have the most effective possible system that’s ever been devised.”

The report recommended it include: a hot line to anonymously raise questions about gambling and game integrity issues; making available any complaints the league receives about refs—beginning in the 2008-09 playoffs—to both teams to avoid suspicions of bias; requiring officials to annually report their contacts among players and team personnel to the league so it can monitor fraternization.

The league already has made a number of changes, including restructuring its referees operations department and began posting officiating assignments the morning of games.

The report also suggests mandatory gambling education for players.

“We believe that gambling can expose the players and the league to significant risks, and therefore it is important that players be educated regarding those risks,” the report said.

The 116-page document disputed Donaghy’s allegations of specific misconduct and favoritism toward certain players and teams, but warned “because the potential for referee bias remains a threat to the integrity of the game, the league can do more.”

It agreed with the federal government that there was no evidence Donaghy made any calls to affect the outcome of games after studying his work in 17 of them, including 16 during the 2006-07 season in which it was believed Donaghy made picks.

It also backed the government’s stance that referee Scott Foster wasn’t involved in any of Donaghy’s misconduct. Donaghy called Foster 134 times from October 2006-April 2007, but the FBI and Pedowitz were satisfied that Foster’s description of their relationship as longtime friends provided a reasonable explanation for the calls.

“The report speaks for itself,” said Lamell McMorris, spokesman for the referees’ union.

Boston Celtics players Paul Pierce and Ray Allen endorsed the recommended mandatory gambling education.

“Throughout the years we have a number of different meetings. … A gambling meeting wouldn’t hurt,” Allen said from training camp in Newport, R.I. “I think its just as important to educate the guys to make sure they don’t give money away that you’ve worked hard for and you want to continue to work hard for. The education would definitely help.”

Pedowitz said that if he owned a team, he wouldn’t even want his players taking part in card games on the team plane.

“The sickness of compulsive gambling can affect many people,” Pedowitz said. “We have a concern that the culture of the NBA ought to be a disciplined one. So we worry about players.”

New York Knicks guard Jamal Crawford said he didn’t think gambling was a problem in the league.

“No, I don’t think a lot of players gamble, if any,” Crawford said. “We’re pretty aware of it, but a class wouldn’t hurt at all.”

Stern wants to be sure players realize the dangers of being involved with people connected to gambling, as Donaghy was.

“It’s really about who they are with and what information they give, because gamblers are always looking for an edge,” Stern said. “And that’s the concern that we have begun to address in rookies and we’ll do more of with respect to players.”

Stern already was aware through Pedowitz’s interviews that nearly all his referees had violated some form of the gambling rules, though none of their activities reached the criminal level.

Referees are now allowed in the offseason to bet at a race track, off-track betting establishment or a casino—though still not the sports book. However, a referee must notify the league’s security department within 24 hours of placing such a bet.

Stern has asked Pedowitz to review the new program at the end of the season.

Army Major General (Ret.) Ronald L. Johnson, who served 32 years in the Army, was hired over the summer as senior vice president, referee operations in response to the investigation. Longtime ref Bernie Fryer became the NBA’s vice president and director of officials, and Joe Borgia was appointed vice president of referee operations.

On Thursday, Pedowitz praised the choice of Johnson, who will address the complaints teams have about the performance—and in some cases, perceived bias — of certain officials.

“It’s clearly an issue if the teams have a perception,” Pedowitz said. “If it’s there, it should be dealt with.”

The report found no evidence to back Donaghy’s accusations that specific games were manipulated, including playoff series in 2002 and 2005. His attorney alleged in June that the league assigned refs to work Game 6 of the 2002 Western Conference finals who would make calls ensuring the Los Angeles Lakers would beat Sacramento, extending the series to a seventh game and improving the TV ratings.

While saying it was “clearly not a well-refereed game,” Pedowitz said it was called legally, and former Kings coach Rick Adelman agreed.

“I don’t know who’s evaluating calls or anything else. I said the same thing at the time and I’ll say it today, the game was officiated differently in Games 6 and 7 than it was the first five. I said that at time and I believed that. That’s not unusual,” said Adelman, now coaching Houston. “I don’t think they were manipulating anything. I don’t think things were really perfect, either.”

AP Sports Writer Chris Duncan in Houston and freelance writer Ken Powtak in Newport, R.I. contributed to this report.
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[mgoose316]

Ex-Blues Owner Get Probation

ST. LOUIS (AP)—Former St. Louis Blues owner Michael Shanahan Sr. was ordered on Friday to pay nearly $8 million in restitution and serve three years of probation for his role in backdating stock options.

The 68-year-old former chief executive officer of Engineered Support Systems pleaded guilty in July to one felony count of falsifying records of a publicly traded company.

Federal prosecutors say he and other ESS officials backdated stock options from 1996 to 2002 to enrich executives and board members of the company, which provided military equipment and support services.

“If I could do a stock transaction today and have it dated a month ago, I would start by selling my 401(k),” Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeff Jensen said. “Regular investors don’t get the benefit of time travel.”

Shanahan led a group of St. Louis businessmen who bought the Blues in 1986 and sold the NHL team in 1999.

About 200 people wrote letters on Shanahan’s behalf highlighting his philanthropic and charitable contributions, said his lawyer, Barry Short.

Shanahan did not admit to orchestrating the scheme, but in his plea agreement said he knowingly signed stock option award letters with a false date. He agreed to pay back $7.8 million.

In exchange for Shanahan’s guilty plea and his agreement to cooperate in a case against another company official who later pleaded guilty, the government dropped other charges against him.

The government also agreed to drop charges against his son, Michael Shanahan Jr., 41, who agreed to report to a probation officer for a year.

The company’s former chief financial officer, Gary Gerhardt of St. Charles, previously pleaded guilty to falsifying records of a publicly traded company. He is scheduled for sentencing Oct. 17. He agreed to make restitution of $1.8 million.

Engineered Support System’s former controller, Steven Landmann, is scheduled for sentencing in November, after admitting he received about $500,000 of the backdating-related proceeds.

DRS Technologies Inc. acquired Engineered Support Systems in 2006.
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[pdxrassler]

Gotta bring this one back because it has been an interesting few weeks here in OregonLand

Oregon Star Running back LaMichael James, the National Freshman of the Year has been arrested and jailed for a Domestic Assault charge which involved strangulation.

this came two days after Oregon kick Rob Beard was arrested for an Assault charge for busting some dude up over a girl.

which came about three weeks after another Oregon kicker was hospitalized because he tried to take on 6 guys in a fight and got his face kicked in so bad it required reconstructive surgery

and on that same night star Quarterback Jeramiah Masoli was accused of breaking and entering a frat house and making off with a bunch of laptops .... and a guitar.

We are quickly becoming Miami West!
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How do you keep an Oregon State football player off your lawn?

Plant Roses ..... 65-38 BITCHES!!!! 37-34 ... ROSE BOWL BITCHES!!!!

[mgoose316]

I was thinking the same thing P. Damn man, did they recruit in South Florida?
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