Rumors for law
Derek Lowe charged with DUI
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According to the Associated Press, Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Derek Lowe was charged with drunk driving on Thursday evening.
A Georgia State Patrol trooper stopped Lowe after he was spotted racing another car down an Atlanta street. After smelling alcohol, the trooper administered a sobriety test and Lowe was arrested.
Obviously we are concerned and disappointed about the events involving Derek Lowe overnight,” the team said in a statement. “We are currently gathering information and plan to address this matter later today.”
Lowe was charged with DUI, reckless driving and improper lane change.
The 37-year-old Lowe is 2-3 with a 3.21 ERA in six starts this year with the Braves.
Lowe joins a growing list of baseball players that have been arrested for DUI which includes: Miguel Cabrera, CoCo Crisp, Austin Kearns and Adam Kennedy.
The Frank McCourt Soap Opera continues
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Today was a huge day in the ongoing McCourt soap opera. Frank who has refused to discuss much of anything with the media, held a press conference in New York after meeting with MLB executives (minus Bud Selig). McCourt said MLB denied the FOX media deal which would have put $300 million up front which would have been invested into the team immediately. “I signed an agreement that $300m up-front from Fox deal would go directly into the Dodgers, not for divorce or any personal matters.”
McCourt for the first time also publicly apologized for his personal spending habits and for his messy divorce and added that the divorce has been very difficult for him.
Then the topic of MLB hiring Tom Schieffer to oversee the day-to-day operations was brought up and McCourt said: “Nobody handed the Dodgers to me and nobody’s going to take them away. I’m not going anywhere.”
Reports have suggested McCourt plans to sue MLB, but he was non-committal when that subject was broached on Wednesday, saying: “I’m very committed to my position, and I have not decided exactly what we’re going to do.”
Shortly have McCourt’s press conference ended, Tom Schieffer’s press conference began. Schieffer did not comment on anything McCourt said specifically but did say: “We don’t want to be disruptive, we want to be helpful. I hope it will give some confidence that the instability and turmoil is coming to an end, and that we are getting to the bottom of whatever the problem is. Los Angeles and Major League Baseball need the Dodgers to be a healthy franchise.”
Familiar face Joe Torre was also at the press conference and said that he will be assisting Schieffer in the investigation. “Joe is a great baseball guy and has been in L.A., so I hope to pick his brain and get any thoughts he may have,” Schieffer said. “If you have Joe Torre available, you use him, and that is what I intend to do.”
Schieffer has yet to talk to McCourt in person but said: “I look forward to talking with him, having a nice visit and seeing what he is concerned about, but I am here to help the franchise get back on its feet and be successful again, and I think that is the Commissioner’s biggest concern.”
But the comments didn’t stop there as MLB VP Rob Manfred later provided this response to McCourt’s comments: “There has been no seizure of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Mr. Schieffer has been appointed as a monitor, and a multi-page written directive from the Commissioner describing his role has been provided to Mr. McCourt,” he said in his statement. “In our meeting, no one from the Dodgers asked a single, specific question about the terms of the document setting forth the monitor’s role. … Finally, Mr. McCourt is well aware of the basis of Baseball’s investigation and has been provided an eight-page document describing the issues of concern to Major League Baseball.”
Unfortunately, things are only going to get worse before they get better for the Dodgers and their loyal fans.
Quotes and other information were obtained via Bill Shaikin of the LA Times.
Retired outfielder Carl Everett arrested for assault with a deadly weapon
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Former Major League outfielder Carl Everett was jailed on aggravated assault with a deadly weapon charges after getting in a dispute with his wife on Monday night in Hillsborough County, Florida. Everett pointed a gun at her head and then broke two cell phones after she attempted to call for help, according to Howard Altman of The Tampa Tribune. The 39-year-old is being held in jail with no bond set.
The argument reportedly escalated when Everett pointed a silver handgun and pressed it against his wife’s head. Everett’s wife, Linda Everett, tried to call 911, but her phone was grabbed by the outfielder, and he broke it. The wife tried to grab another phone to call for help, but that phone was also broken by Everett.
Everett played from 1993-2006 and during his time with eight Major League teams, he amassed a .271/.341/.462 average with 202 home runs in 1405 games played.
Lenny Dykstra charged with embezzlement
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Former Major League Baseball player Lenny Dykstra has been charged with embezzling from a bankruptcy estate, according to the Associated Press.
After Dykstra filed for bankruptcy in 2009, the former outfielder for the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies hid, sold or destroyed more than $400,000 worth of items from his $18.5 million mansion in Southern California. At the time, Dykstra claimed he owed more than $31 million and had only $50,000 in assets.
Authorities say that he was arrested on Thursday for an unrelated grand theft investigation and remains jailed without bail. He was charged with embezzlement on Wednesday.
Kevin Mitchell sentenced to 3 years probation for assualt
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Last year, we learned that former National League MVP Kevin Mitchell was ordered to stand trial after being accused of assaulting a man at a golf club at Bonita Golf Club in Southern California.
Yesterday, Mitchell was sentenced sentenced to three years of probation for his attack according to NBCSanDiego.
Mitchell pleaded no contest in March to a misdemeanor count of assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury stemming from the July 2010 incident at the Bonita Golf Club course.
His victim, Leonard Lerma, said Mitchell started the fight on the 13th hole. “I want to show you who I am, motherf–ker,” Mitchell told Lerma. “I’m an old school gangster.”
Lerma also described a fight in which Mitchell slapped him on the cheek, punched him on the cheek and punched him in the forehead.
Mitchell, 48, won the NL MVP in 1989 with the San Francisco Giants, and was on the 1986 New York Mets team that won the World Series. He’s played for nine teams in his 13 year career including the San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, Cincinnati Reds, Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians and Oakland Athletics.
Former murder suspect Alfredo Simon expected in US
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The former murder suspect and right-handed pitcher Alfredo Simon of the Baltimore Orioles is expected to be in the United States, Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun reports.
Simon had previously been suspected for the murder of 25-year-old Michel Castillo. Simon was accused of firing celebratory shoots into the air on New Years Eve, a practice not uncommon in the Dominican Republic.
The right-hander is not absolutely absolved from the crime, but Zrebiec says that he has been able to secure a Visa which allows him to travel to the United States. Zrebiec does not know when Simon will be available, but he’ll begin a throwing program in preparation for the 2011 season.
Dodger fans brutally beat Giants fan
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The Dodgers had many question marks leading up to the season opener. Clayton Kershaw silenced the critics and all seemed well at Chavez Ravine (except for Jonathan Broxton allowing a solo shot to Pat Burrell) as the Dodgers beat the defending champs 2-1.
Then the game ended and that’s when everything went from good to bad. According to ABC7.com, Two men wearing Dodgers’ gear attacked a Giants fan in the Dodger Stadium parking lot. Police said the incident began as a verbal fight inside the stadium between a group of Giants fans and a group of Dodgers fans.
It Probably went like this:
Dodger fans: Giants suck!
Giants fans: Who has the ring!
Dodger fans get mad, has a few ok 7 or 8 beers in their system and the following takes place.
The Giants fans tried to walk away and defuse the situation but was greeted by his attackers from behind. “He fell to the ground and hit his head, and they (Dodger fans) began to kick him several times,” said P.J. Morris of the Los Angeles Police Department.
The victim, who is from Northern California, was taken to a local hospital in critical but stable condition.
Though the safety at Dodger stadium has improved over the years (two individuals were arrested for attempted murder a few years back on opening day), it is unfortunate when fans can not even wear a rival teams jersey into the stadium in fear of some type of verbal or physical abuse.
It seems that some type of assault involving Dodger fans happens every year on Opening Day. In 2009, a man was stabbed with a knife. In 2010, 132 people were arrested for public intoxication and 2011 will be marked as another Opening Day where a rival fan is beat.
Barry Zito taken to hospital after traffic accident
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Left-handed pitcher Barry Zito was taken to the hospital with unknown injuries after being involved in a traffic accident Wednesday night, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. It doesn’t appear that he was seriously injured since he was released from the hospital, but fire personnel had to assist him in getting out of his car.
The veteran pitcher was involved in a two-vehicle accident near the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Sunset Plaza Drive – not too far from Zito’s Hollywood HIlls home. The police report did not deem him to be at fault.
The Giants are in Southern California to open up their season against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday evening. Zito is not scheduled to pitch until Sunday evening versus the Dodgers.
Evan Longoria’s AK-47 rifle stolen in residential burglary
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Over the weekend, the shared home of Evan Longoria, David Price and Reid Brignac in Port Charlotte, Florida was burglarized while the players were playing a Spring Training game. Among the items stolen was a 60-inch flat screen TV, three iPads, two Xbox game systems, headphones, Price’s laptop and several of Price’s high-priced watches. One other item to note was an AK-47 rifle that belonged to Longoria. Here’s the full release from the Charlotte County Sheriff’s department that notes a weapon was taken during the incident, courtesy of Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times:
Charlotte County Sheriff’s detectives continue their investigation into the burglary of a Port Charlotte home rented by Tampa Bay Rays baseball players near the stadium on Fernwood Street. A total of nearly $56,000 worth of items was stolen.
CCSO received the call Saturday at 3:30 p.m. from Evan Longoria , 25, who said when he arrived back home he discovered numerous items missing. His roommates are Reid Brignac, 25, and 25 year old David Price. While the players were away at a game between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., someone entered through an unlocked window.
Items stolen from the players were jewelry, cash, computer equipment, electronics, and a weapon. If anyone has information about this case, please call the CCSO at 941-639-2101, or Crime Stoppers at 800-780-TIPS (8477).
The sheriff’s office added that the AK-47 was “perfectly legal”.
An AK-47 is an gas-operated assault rifle that was first developed by the Soviet Union and was accepted into their armed forced in 1949. The weapon was considered the first true assault rifle and is one of the most widely used guns because of its durability, low production cost and ease of use.
Home of Longoria, Price and Brignac robbed
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The shared house of Evan Longoria, David Price and Reid Brignac in Port Charlotte, Fla was robbed over the weekend, Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times reports. Among the items that were taken include a 60-inch flat screen TV, three iPads, two Xbox game systems, headphones, Price’s laptop and several of Price’s high-priced watches.
“Thank God nobody was there,” Brignac said Sunday. “If we were there, it would have been a different story.”
“That was one of the biggest things,” Longoria said, “that everybody was okay and safe, and nobody had to fight their way out of a home invasion robbery. … A multitude of different things could have happened, and there could have been people injured.”
The robbery took place while the three were at a game on Saturday afternoon.
“They took pretty much everything that was ours inside the house,” Longoria said.
This is the second time that Longoria was a victim to theft. His 1967 Camaro was stolen in early March from the lot of an Arizona shop where it was being refurbished.
