Saturday, January 11, 1997

Fans happy Cowboys are cleared

By Berta Delgado and Jennifer Wang / The Dallas Morning News (Jan. 11, 1997)

DALLAS (KRT) - Cowboys' fans breathed a sigh of relief Friday night - and it had nothing to do with touchdowns or turnovers.

Many fans were happy to hear that sexual assault allegations against offensive lineman Erik Williams and wide receiver Michael Irvin were untrue.

"My boys were telling the truth!" Yvette Shaw, 38, of Dallas, shouted into the telephone. "Okay, everybody's made mistakes, and we know (Michael) messed up, but when they make accusations like that, everybody goes down.

"When a woman makes up something like that, that hurts us all as women. It hurts credibility for a lot of women who are going through that type of thing for real."

Tony Ford, a longtime Cowboys' fan who has supported the team through the toughest of times, said he also was thrilled to hear that the accuser in the Dec. 29 incident recanted her story. Police said they found no evidence of a crime.

"I am so happy that Michael is telling the truth about everything," said the 37-year-old resident of nearby Lancaster, Texas.

"It seems that the crime this time, in this day and age, was that when someone is trying to go straight, the public will immediately believe the worst about him. I am not saying that he (Michael) is spic and span and everything, but he's obviously trying ... Eric Williams, regardless of his personal life, I am glad to see that he's keeping his nose clean."

Many fans said something about the woman's story was not quite right when she accused Williams of sexually assaulting her while Irvin pointed a gun at her head and videotaped the assault.

"I thought it was a hoax from the start," said Jay Ortega, 17, who was hanging out with friends in the West End. "People are like that. They get mad at stars or celebrities and the first thing they do is go to the cops and say something happened."

Mike Pecino, who was watching the Dallas Stars game at Reunion Arena on Friday night, was not quite so nice.

"Hang her," said the 29-year-old from The Colony. "I knew it from the beginning. I was mad because I was thinking, 'Here's a lady who's out to make money.' Just hang her."

Norma Jean Northcutt, who was with a friend at Randy White's All American Bar and Grill in northwest Dallas, said people just "have it in for the 'Boys."

"The 'Boys are America's Team, and other people don't like them," the 37-year-old Dallas resident said. "Let them press charges against her, not the 'Boys. If she was in it for publicity, she needs to go down."

Bob Moser, who also was at White's restaurant, said he wasn't shocked at the accusations against Irvin and Williams.

"I was shocked at the police department. I don't think that they handled it very well. They had a lot of work to do, and they came out (publicly with the charges) too early," said the 28-year-old from Dallas.

"If I were Irvin or Williams, I would be looking at some sort of civil suit" against the accuser, Moser said.

Mrs. J.F. Self said she knew Irvin, who is on probation after pleading no contest to cocaine possession last summer, would not do anything to land himself in jail.

"I knew it was a frame-up, a setup. It had to be," said the 73-year-old Dallas resident. "Neither Michael Irvin nor I are rocket scientists, but nobody's stupid enough to risk 20 years in the penitentiary.

"I think it's done irreparable harm to the Dallas Cowboys," she said. "I think it is a crying shame."

Hector Ramirez, who was dining at Gator's in the West End, said he's still unsure about the case. "It's hard because you just don't know who to believe or what to believe any more," said the 17-year-old from Dallas. "It's like they're playing games with us or something. You just don't know."

("Dallas Morning News" staff writer Steve McGonigle contributed to this report.)

(c) 1997, The Dallas Morning News.

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