Christopher Lyons, the attorney for Browns receiver Donte' Stallworth, disputed the public consensus that Stallworth's fame and weath allowed him to get off easy after pleading guilty to DUI manslaughter.
With his plea bargain Tuesday, Stallworth was sentenced to 30 days in jail and 10 years probation, the first two years under community control, and the loss of driving privileges for life. He will be allowed to work without electronic monitoring during the first two years and can apply for a hardship license after five years.
Stallworth was driving with a blood alcohol level of .126, above the state limit of .08, when he struck and killed pedestrian Mario Reyes, 59, in Miami Beach on March 14. Signed to a seven-year, $35 million contract in 2008, Stallworth had just received a $4.5 million roster bonus from the Browns on March 13.
"The fame and wealth, I was concerned that would be a hindrance," Lyons said during a radio appearance Wednesday on 790 The Ticket in Miami. "What we're hearing is if Joe Blow had the same case, he would have come out with a different result. And I take issue with that. I think the spotlight being on the case made it more difficult to reach this result."
When show host Dan LeBetard suggested that Joe Blow can't afford Lyons, a former prosecutor, Lyons laughed and said, "I'm getting a few of those calls today."
Asked if an average attorney for a poor person could get the same result for his client, Lyons said, "If they did the same things we did, they would get the same result."
Lyons said the Reyes' family pushed for a quick resolution.
“The Reyes family throughout this process, and their attorneys, were great," Lyons told 790. "They certainly did not want to see this case be relived with a trial. Obviously I think the prosecutor in the case (Tuesday) informed the judge that this case had a unique set of facts and evidence, like every case does in our system. Part of that was obviously about the fault issue in this case which some people called the causation element, and certainly among many factors that was an issue."
Lyons would not say if he was referring to the fact that Reyes was not in the crosswalk when he was struck.
Donte's attorney stated that "…this case had a unique set of facts and evidence…". This is the one thing the media and general public seems to be ignoring in this case. Shortly after the accident, profootballtalk.com posted on their site the police officer's drawing of the accident scene and what actually happened. I think if the media and general public actually viewed this information from the police report they would view this case in a whole different light and they wouldn't be as outraged about Donte's punishment.
From what I've seen in the drawing, this case was not your typical horrific drunk driver case in which the drunk driver is driving erratically and loses control and crosses the median into oncoming traffic or drives off the road and hits a pedestrian walking on the sidewalk. Donte was just driving his car in the far left lane of a six-lane road (3 lanes each way) when Mr. Reyes walked directly in the path of his car in his lane. Donte had a barrier to his left, and Mr. Reyes walking in front of him towards the path of his car to his right. He was actually kind of trapped – he couldn't swerve to his left because of the barrier, and if he swerves to the right and Mr. Reyes stops walking, he would have slammed right into him. This is why I believe Donte flashed his lights at the guy – thinking that Mr. Reyes would see him and stop walking and let Donte drive through in his lane that he was already in. The tragic thing is that Mr. Reyes was most likely looking accross the street at maybe the approaching bus that he was trying to catch or something else and wasn't paying attention. He may have given a quick look when he started crossing, didn't see anything, and then didn't pay attention after that. Donte, over the limit or not, was really in a tough situation and I believe that he really thought that Mr. Reyes was going to stop, and when he kept coming into the path of his car, I'm sure he was stunned and tried to stop but it was too late. Maybe if Donte was completely sober he could have reacted quicker and stopped in time, but maybe not either. Because he was breaking the law driving over the limit and a man was killed, I do believe he should have been punished. From what I saw in the accident diagram, Mr. Reyes was mostly at fault in this situation, so I can see why Donte received the sentence he got. I really don't think it had that much to do with money.
At least a few times a week every day when I drive to work in the morning, there's always a pedestrian that starts jaywalking across the street towards the path of my car and then stops in the middle of the road right on the center line and I drive right by. After seeing what happened in this case, I've wondered to myself "what if one of these times the pedestrian just doesn't stop in the middle of the road and keeps on walking into the path of my car? Would I be able to stop in time and not hit the person?" The answer I come up with is probably not. I guess the best thing that Donte could have done was immediately slow down when he saw the guy coming, but like in the cases that I've dealt with personally, I could see how he thought that the guy would see him and stop, especially after flashing his lights. Yes, Donte made a huge mistake on that fateful day by getting behind the wheel while he was over the limit, but I for one will not condemn him for what happened.
i've had pretty much the same thoughts – i think if people were actually informed about the details of the accident, public opinion would be affected accordingly.
I, too, was stunned when I saw the picture of the road. From earlier reports, you would have thought it was your typical two-lane street. This was more like an three lane interstate. Mr. Reyes had NO business crossing that road except with the assistance of a traffic light.
Having said that, there is no way the DA in the case should have taken the plea as it was. One year in jail, minimum, plus many other penalties should have been attatched to Stallworth's plea. I believe that Donte would have taken it, because he has shown me to me a real man who feels he deserves to be punished for what he did.
This is another example of a traffic death that could have easily been avoided.
The person crossing the six lane road not at a traffice signal and cross walk. If stallworth was not leagally drunk, he would never have been charged. people on both sides, need to make good decisions, and be responsible to follow the traffic laws. They are there for a reason, to protect people.
I feel bad for all involved. It should have never happened.
My guess is that the Reyes family wanted it resolved quickly because they are illegals.
Don't quit your day job Jake. Reyes was born in Cuba, but he was here legally. Like the rest of his family.
I think (from what I have read on the web) that Stallworth was not at fault for the death of Reyes. That is why I question his plea of guilty for DUI manslaughter. His only punishable action was DUI.
R M Kraus
Akron
I live in South Flordia, and in Miami particularly I am always astonished to see how many people jaywalk. It is extremely dangerous and always infuriates me. Folks down here pay absolutely no attention to crossing in the crosswalks. It's a miracle that more people are not killed or injured on a daily basis.