Big Ben Faces Drunk Driving, Gun Charges

[Kenny]

Real GM Link

Ben Wallace is facing a five-year felony charge of carrying a concealed weapon after they arrested him on suspicion of drunk driving early Saturday in the Detroit area.

Not sure how this matter will be treated, but it's not a good wrap for either Wallace or the NBA. I wonder if his role in the Palace Brawl will have any weight in this.

[benji]

The Real GM snippet makes it sound worse than it is. He was fully cooperative, "a gentleman" with police and admitted he screwed up. The gun was unloaded, registered and in a backpack in a back seat. The police seem to believe his story that he forgot it was still in the car. And, unlike most NBA players, he doesn't have a prior record. He'll probably just spend a couple weeks in jail for the DUI due to the judge he got and pay a fine for a lesser gun charge.

They only gave him a $5,000 bail which indicates they don't think it's a very serious issue.

[shadowgrin]

He's still no Delonte West.

[Patr1ck]

He thought he saw Javaris Crittenton.

[Andrew]

The drink driving is irresponsible, but fortunately no one was injured and hopefully he's learned his lesson. Not the best PR, but it'll pass.

[benji]

As an update, they just gave him misdemeanors, which is usual in such a situation (someone with no priors who just screwed up once and fully cooperated):
http://www.detnews.com/article/20111101 ... ing-arrest

Detroit Pistons center Ben Wallace pleaded guilty Tuesday morning to two misdemeanor charges in Oakland Circuit Court on a Sept. 24 drunken driving and weapons offense in Bloomfield Township.

Wallace, 37, of Bloomfield Hills appeared before Judge Shalina Kumar and entered guilty pleas to charges of driving while intoxicated and possession of a firearm while operating a vehicle when intoxicated. Both charges are misdemeanors that carry a maximum jail sentence of up to 93 days.

Under the agreement, assistant prosecutor Rob Novy told Kumar his office had agreed to dismiss a charge of carrying a concealed weapon, a felony that can carry up to five years in prison.

...

Wallace took breathalyzer tests that showed he exceeded the .08 blood-alcohol level at which a driver is considered intoxicated in Michigan. In court Tuesday, Wallace told Kumar he had submitted to two breathalyzer tests with police that indicated he had a blood-alcohol count of .14.

Police said Wallace, who was cooperative throughout the incident, explained he had forgotten about the firearm, which he had packed in the car the day before, when he made a return drive to Michigan from Virginia. Wallace said the weapon was registered to his wife but he had packed it for his protection on the trip.

Wallace left the courtroom out a back door after Tuesday's hearing. His attorney, Steven Fishman, told reporters while his client is not happy with having to appear in court on the offense, both believed the prosecutor's office had treated him fairly and "not as a basketball player."

I still assume he'll spend a couple weeks in jail, but it's not like he has anything else to do.

[NovU]

"not as a basketball player"

LoLz.