MIAMI — A judge refused Thursday to release surveillance video depicting the moment a car driven by Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte’ Stallworth struck and killed a pedestrian in a drunk-driving crash.
Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Dennis Murphy said the privacy interests of the family of victim Mario Reyes outweighed the public’s right to view the video. Several news organizations, including The Associated Press, made public records requests seeking release of the video.
“This is akin to autopsy photographs,” Murphy said at a hearing, adding that the video would remain sealed “for the foreseeable future as far as I’m concerned.”
Prosecutors said the video, recorded by a Florida Power & Light camera, shows Reyes running across MacArthur Causeway on March 14 and being struck by Stallworth’s 2005 Bentley luxury car. On a recorded 911 call, Stallworth said that Reyes “came out of nowhere” before the crash.
A police report said Reyes, a construction crane operator just leaving his job, was rushing to catch a bus home when the crash occurred.
Tests later showed that Stallworth, who had been drinking that night at a swank Miami Beach nightclub, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.126, well above Florida’s 0.08 legal limit. Stallworth’s attorneys also have confirmed that blood tests showed traces of marijuana as well.
Stallworth, 29, is serving a 30-day jail sentence after pleading guilty to DUI manslaughter, which will be followed by two years of house arrest, probation and other restrictions. Stallworth reached an undisclosed financial settlement with the Reyes family but has also been suspended indefinitely by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.
Stallworth attorney Christopher Lyons received permission from Murphy to view the video in the future. Because the video apparently shows that Reyes darted out into traffic, it could have a bearing on the ultimate punishment imposed on Stallworth by the NFL.
“If I do need to view the video, I would abide by any court order that there be no duplication,” Lyons told the judge.
Stallworth signed a seven-year, $35 million contract with the Browns before last season but was injured for much of the year. He has also played for New England, Philadelphia and New Orleans and was a college star at Tennessee.
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Comments » 22
ALL_VOL75 writes:
Don't release this video! Have some respect for the family! As for Stallworth, he has been sentenced and is in jail. Case Closed!
TommyJack writes:
See no reason to release video.
byobbio writes:
Note to News Sentinel:
Get your headline information to match the information in the article.
Head says that the judge is asking to release the video.
First line of text says the judge is being asked to release the video.
Two completely separate statements.
This shoddy journalism tells me that you guys are a bunch of slackers.
BYOBBIO
TommyJack writes:
Doubt that. Would be hard on family. You get legally drunk, you're at fault legally...no matter the circumstances.
kiffownsfla writes:
Lmfao you make my sides hurt laughing at your post! THANKS Lmao GO VOLS!
sigep889 writes:
You must be a complete loser to spend all of your time on the Vols message board just to talk trash to Vol fans. You comment on every single article and you're always negative. Take your trash talking somewhere else. Vol fans don't need people like you ruining our website.
EngineerVol writes:
Pointing out that the pedestrian shared in the responsibility for his own demise isn't showing a lack of sympathy. It's rationally talking about all of the facts. Everyone has sympathy for the man but it doesn't change the fact that if he had walked down the street to a traffic light that none of this would have happened. Donte obviously made a poor decision but that doesn't change the fact that responsibility for this tragedy is shared, and discussing the issue has nothing to do with not being sympathetic.
EngineerVol writes:
I agree with the family part but not being at fault no matter what.
Just because you're over the legal limit doesn't mean your at fault. If your drinking and driving and someone runs a light and hits you, they're still at fault for the accident and responsible for damages. You would still get sited for a DUI, but you're not automatically at fault because of it.
These factors are why the prosecution only asked for 30 days in jail and why the judge allowed the plea.
The problem for the prosecution is that they needed to prove that the alcohol was directly responsible for the accident, and that's tough to do when your client runs across a highway. A soccer mom distracted by a van full of kids could have easily hit the guy as well. As a result it's tough to prove that drinking was the cause. Now if the guy was in the cross walk and Donte ran a red light....that's a different story.
ncvol17 writes:
boy, I remember Donte being a good kid at UT..his counterpart, Kelley Washington was a schmuck and a half. Now it seems roles are reversed. Drinking ALL night at a swank after hours bar and driving as day begins, sad...He is not an 18-19 year old kid in school on campus anymore. He is an adult..time to stop kids games like all night drinking.. drunk at 18 can be fun.. drunk after about age 24 is beginning to be really sad....
Pullingguard writes:
Picky, Picky, Picky, could you have not posted something worth while instead of being a nit-picker.
VolDad4Life writes:
You are an idiot. You're an obese smelly loser, too fat to fit in a tub or shower. The roaches in your trailor have more brain power than you. Get a job and quit paying for internet service with your welfare check. Didn't you learn anything when DCS took your kids away?
Tenn_Dawg writes:
Agree...no reason to release this video. Who does it serve to release this? The man is deceased, the penalty has been levied (no matter how light it may seem), Stallworth has been upfront about what happened and taken responsibility for it. Leave it alone and let the family move on and let Stallworth move on.
EngineerVol writes:
I never said he wasn't guilty, and I also pointed out his mistake and that he had some responsibility in the matter. I made no excuse for him. Again, I pointed out the fact that the pedestrian was also at fault for the accident.
And, the plea agreement was offered by the prosecution. The reason is because they knew the pedestrian also had some responsibility in the matter and that it would be hard to prove that alcohol was the only reason the accident occurred or that it played any roll in the accident. A sober person very easily could have hit someone running across the highway. It's not the responsibility of people to lock up their brakes on a highway/causeway to keep from hitting people. People shouldn't be there in the first place and this is why.
Pointing out these facts isn't being unsympathetic. It's very unfortunate that a husband/father lost their life, but it doesn't change the fact that the pedestrian needs to take a large portion of the blame for what happened.
TommyJack writes:
I think you're nitpicking. Any pedestrian death after being struck by an overserved driver, will result in the prosecution of the DD.
largeandincharge writes:
why do you keep adding on false accusations? it is said nowhere that he was on drugs. he was under the influence of alcohol. he is not a gator or a tide, nor a bulldog he is not on everything you can get illegally as the ones mentioned above. their fans are on it too. there you go that is a false allegation that would seem to be more truth than yours.
VOLnNC writes:
Well everyone seems to be forgetting that in Florida it doesn't matter if you're at an intersection because pedestrians have the right of way. Plus the guy is still dead and Dante was still driving under the influence. What is there to be vindicated?
byobbio writes:
PG, go pull yourself.
newtonrail writes:
Naffy, do you want to televise executions also? That's what this would amount to on You Tube. Whatever probative value it had went out the window with the plea deal, and the BA level over legal limit. No alcohol or MJ and there would probably be no charges.
BigOrangeVol writes:
Normally it's called Contributory Negligence. In Florida they use Pure Comparative Negligence. That's why the sentence for Donte' is what it is. Educate yourselves before spewing your stupidity and extraneous opinions!!!
Why is anyone still replying to Navslob? Just ignore that pile of fecal matter and walk around it.
TommyJack writes:
Where else would they go, Bear? They were refused admittance to Auburn.
GR82BAVOL writes:
Well I'm certainly not gonna mix it up with this crowd, but I can definitely understand why Donte's lawyer wants to see it, and it would most likely explain the following (which has confused me since it happened):
From every account I've read regarding this unfortunate accident, Donte actually had time to flash his lights at Reyes. I have always wondered why/how one had the time and reflexes to flash their lights and somehow still hit him. The camera recording might clear some things up; things we might not have known otherwise.
volmot writes:
Umm maybe you should reread the article. It says that there were traces of marijuana in his system not that he was under the influenece of marijuana which can stay in your system up to 30 days but don't let facts get in the way of "stirring it up" on an opposing team site.
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