Horse Tracks - 2/24/10 - Williams' murder trial begins; Wiegmann and Jordan released

Punching out a drunk minor is not something that you should be doing in the offseason, or your lifetime, for that matter.

Wiegmann did an able job filling in for Nalen in ’08, but he certainly fell off in ’09. This is a move we were all expecting. The timing is interesting though: cutting him before having an obvious replacement seems a little odd, unless he had a roster bonus coming due at the beginning of the FA period.

The William’s murder trial story is sad. The circumstances as related do make Klis’s speculation about Marshall’s desire to get out of Denver sound more plausible — having his drunken cousin being the specific catalyst must be a difficult weight to carry. Still, none of us (especially Klis) is a psychologist so it is always going to be speculation.

So some dumb 18yo kid gets drunk, says or does something he shouldn’t and gets popped. That’s life baby. Don’t say stupid things.

didn’t surprise anyone at this point. I wish them both well in their future gigs.

I’m surprised the Athens police even took the complaint. Heck the kid says he didn’t recall what happened someone else had to tell him. (I heard Joe say Fred said Tony saw Moreno hit me, ya that will hold up in a court……not).

Lot’s of good stuff from NFP Thanks John.

sounds entirely made up to me

that they’re really going to have some of these guys testify three years later, having consumed as much alcohol as they did that night. When you’re that drunk, your memory is fuzzy the next day, the next week, much less three years down the road. I understand someone needs to testify, but that’s like calling me to testify just because I was at the club that night.

Anyone have a good link for more details on the trial?

but thanks for the links guys, that’s helpful.

And thank you, c_style, I had a hard time distinguishing the difference between watching a friend die and what I ate for breakfast. I appreciate you clearing that up for me. whomp whomp

This is automatically a high profile case because we’re talking about a pro football player. From what little I’ve been able to find, it appears the case is still under investigation. Because even good cops are sensitive to accusations of special treatment, you’ve got to believe that this investigation is going to be very exhaustive so it’ll take some time.

And just because the alleged victim has no independant recollection of the incident doesn’t mean there isn’t a case. (Perhaps I should say two cases because there is a possible criminal case and a possible civil case.) Some or all of the other witnesses may be credible and point the finger at Knowshon. If witness accounts are convincing enough, the police might even make an arrest and file preliminary charges against the Defendant in order to set bail.

Because this case is high profile it is also automatically political as well. Let’s face it, careers can be made or destroyed on cases like these. In the next step of the possible criminal case, a District Attorney, or the Georgia equivalent, will review the case and make his or her own decisions based on the facts. The DA might decide not to proceed, in which case he could either not file or ask that the preliminary charges be dismissed. But the DA might proceed with the charges already filed or change the charges and/or add other charges.

A publically minded DA might also consider the value of sending a message to every one who gets involved in cases like these. A conviction of a high profile defendant would send a powerful message. A self serving DA might look at the political gains he can make. Either way, it sure wouldn’t hurt to be seen by the electorate on the TV every night “protecting the common man fron the wanton excesses of pampered professional athletes.”

And that’s just the criminal case.

There is also a lot of potential for a civil case because of the deep pockets of the possible defendant. I wouldn’t be surprised if personal injury lawyers are already lining up to take this alleged victim on as a client. Remember, you don’t always have to be in the wrong to be sued and you don’t always have to be in the right to win a hefty sum of money.

Couple that with the the fact that the burden of proof is much lower in a civil case. The plaintiff need only prove his or her case by a preponderance of the evidence. To explain that concept imagine that old fashioned balance scale that Justice holds in her hand. Now imagine every piece of evidence for the plaintiff, the alleged victim, being placed on one side and every piece of evidence for the defendant being placed on the other. Whichever way the scale tips, that side wins.

The risk of a loss in this kind of case is much higher.

And we also have to remember that the Commissioner is probably going to be keeping an eye on this case as well.

The 8-time Pro Bowler lectured players about the dangers of making poor life decisions. "I was here when Ryan Leaf was here. But also I was here when Michael Vick was here. And I sat up here and talked with Plaxico Burress. And Pacman was sitting right there, too. I seen all these kids come through the National Football League and every one of them—I tried to tell them the truth—and every one of them looked at me and said, ‘You know, Cris. It ain’t gonna be me. It ain’t gonna happen to me.’" Carter even laid the smackdown on a dozing player, reportedly telling the unnamed rookie, "if you don’t want to listen to people who know more than you and who can help you navigate through what lies ahead, odds are you won’t be in the league for long." It’ll be interesting to see if the player is exposed later on. We’re betting he will be.

I am not sure if that player was ever exposed, but it does send a sharp message that not every one of them will become decent football players. I wonder if it was Moreno?

For a professional to go back to College to party. It seems like every year this happens and a assault charge or a rape charge comes up. If you go back don’t party!

I actually wouldn’t want Mawae. We need a young core that will grow together.