Sunday, June 30, 1996

Athletes are more and more above the law

By TED DUNNAM
Assistant Sports Editor

Ever seen the movie "Above the Law"? The real version, I mean.

The one starring Bam Morris, Brian Blades, O.J. Simpson, Albert Belle, and a strong supporting cast led by Steve Howe and Lawrence Phillips?

This is no action flick, though, and certainly no comedy. This is a dead-serious drama that is sending the following message:

Athletes are gods, icons, objects of worship - people who are judged by their athletic abilities and achievements alone and nothing more.

This is not an opinion or a guess. It is a fact.

This is what the professional sports world has become.

And we, America, are expected to accept the fact that professional athletes have impunity.
For one, I won't.

There is a growing inclination, too, to accept the fact that there are a comparable number of incompetent persons in the legal profession as there are system-beaters in professional sports.

An increasing number of athletes have no regard for authority for one overriding reason - they can get away with whatever they want, and they know it.

Before I go any further, let me state that there are plenty of athletes I admire. Many more than the ones I don't.

And giving them the benefit of the doubt, I would say that there are many more competent people in the legal profession and judicial system than those who aren't.

That said, it's time to provide solid support to the fact that athletes have become untouchable figures of idolatry.

Bam Morris, basically, is getting off scot-free for getting caught red-handed possessing six pounds of marijuana and a gram of cocaine.

This one is a joke - not that the others don't have heavyweight punch lines. The felony cocaine charge against Morris was dropped with the prosecuting attorney recommending he get no jail time.
Do what? How much of Bam's stash did this guy smoke? Not only can you get a whiff of doobie fumes here, I smell a prosecuting attorney wanting a conviction on his record. Gotta look out for No. 1 at all costs.

Somebody ought to check, by the way, to see if that wasn't the Toke Walker Award that Bam carted off a few years ago.

Before I go any further again, let me tell you that none of this surprises me. It does sicken me and bleeps me off to no end.

I don't claim to be a member of the moral majority. When it comes to washing away sins, I could use as much grape juice, bread, and soap as the next guy.

Unless the next guy, of course, is O.J. Simpson.

Which brings us to the topic of getting away with murder.

Brian Blades and the Juice - Harry Houdini should take notes on this. In O.J.'s case, the common citizen is convicted of this crime before you can say fits like a glove. Overwhelming evidence for conviction didn't mean anything.

If you really want to find out how incompetent the prosecution was in this case, read Vincent Bugliosi's new book on how badly the case was bungled. Vince, who successfully prosecuted 105 of 106 felony cases, sent Charles Manson to death row which was commuted to life in the slammer.
Bugliosi is regarded by many as the best prosecuting attorney ever.

If Bugliosi had handled the Simpson case, O.J. might not be looking for the killers right now.
Who messed up?

Brian Blades? He was convicted of a manslaughter charge, but the judge overturned that conviction. Even the defense attorney said the judge was going to get "massacred for her decision."

Granted, this one isn't an open-and-shut case. Let's hope the judge made the right decision. But when the jury and judge disagree, who's not paying attention? Setback for either the jury or judge here.

Albert Belle? He knocked some pip-squeak second baseman into next January and got a five-game suspension. This, however, is no major crime. Just another character flaw of which Mr. Belle seems to have an endless supply.

Lest the punishment be too sharp, the suspension was reduced to three games. Then two games. If this keeps up, I figure by the end of the season, Belle will have received the Nobel Peace Prize.

Lawrence Phillips? This guy's about 875 shucks shy of cornfield. Do we really need a chronology on our Larry? Like Albert, his list will likely be updated in a couple of weeks.

Steve Howe? He's had more chances than an Ottawa Senator goalie - and keeps getting them. Now he tries to slip a loaded .357 Magnum through airport security, carry-on luggage style.

Huh? Somebody, please pull down the overhead oxygen mask and give Steve some air. Hurry. Not enough's circulatin' in his noggin. What's next for Steve? Driving a Ford Pinto in a demolition derby?

Michael Irvin?

This thing gets stranger by the minute. The thing that irks me the most about this deal is that Michael will come out smelling like a rose. To think that he could emerge a hero out of all of this mess seriously makes my blood boil.

I can envision the eventual outpouring of sympathy for poor, misunderstood Michael on this drug bust/topless dancer/hitman circus. He was set up, entrapped and had no alternative but to show up at Residence Inn.

Here's an idea, Michael: How about going home after work and seeing your wife and daughter - if that's not too low on the priority list.

And just Friday, Isaiah Rider was arrested. There will be more. The list does not end.

To be truthful about the matter, some or all of the above people may be innocent. But law enforcement officers don't make a habit of arresting people without reason. And charges - 99 percent of the time - aren't filed without reason.

But what do these arrests mean if these prima donna athletes keep avoiding "justice"?
The only way that this trend will be reversed is if an athlete - a big-name athlete - is made an example of.

Will it happen? Who knows? When, and if it does happen, a serious message needs to be sent. Right now, for the same crime, John Doe gets the maximum sentence while John Athlete gets off.
And Interested Observer is left shaking his head.

Yes, this is definitely a screwed-up society in which we live.