Major Injustice

This is Dante Stallworth, wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns. He just finished a 1 year suspension and was reinstated by the commissioner of the league. The first thing the Browns did was release him of his contract, which was 7 years, $35 million. He played one year, then got suspended. Upon his reinstatement, the Browns got rid of him. Injustice? No.

Last year, Stallworth was drunk when he was driving home from somewhere. The legal limit in Florida, where he was cited, is .08. His level was tested at .126. How did they spot him? He was involved in a crash. Not just him, another person was involved. This person was on his way home from somewhere as well. From work. To see his family. 59 year old Mario Reyes, a construction worker, was struck and killed as he crossed the street to catch the bus that takes him home. Yes, he was in a crosswalk. Injustice? Maybe.

The real injustice here is the sentence Stallworth received and the payment that bought himself out of his problem. He was charged with DUI Manslaughter. Sounds bad, right? It can be. In 2008, an 18 year old boy (man) received 24 years for DUI Manslaughter. This case was also in Florida. The boy had no prior record and no history of DUI. What did Stallworth get? Well, before he pleaded guilty, he struck a financial deal with the family. What amount of money replaced the life of Reyes? Must of been a ton. Once Stallworth pleaded guilty, he received a jail sentence of...wait for it...30 DAYS! Of which he only served 24 days of it. Two days after being sentenced, the NFL suspended him indefinitely without pay. I guess a year suspension is enough, according to the commissioner of the NFL.

The Browns absolutely did the right thing. Too bad more teams won't follow suit. More than likely, Stallworth will sign with another team, who will forgive him and pay him even more.

That is the saddest injustice of all.