Initial Facts and Speculation—Another Athlete in Serious Trouble

The facts are slowly trickling out about what is alleged to have occurred when NFL Football Cleveland Brown’s wide receiver Donte Stallworth struck and killed a pedestrian while driving his Bentley on March 14, 2009 in Miami Beach Florida. Stallworth’s car hit and killed 59 year old Mario Reyes a little after 7 a.m. on McArthur Causeway on March 14^th.

Media outlets soon reported that Stallworth, who signed a 7 year, 35 million dollar contract with the Browns in 2007, was driving drunk with an alcohol content over the .08 legal limit in the State of Florida, when he struck and killed Reyes. However, none of these media reports about Stallworth’s blood alcohol level have been confirmed by any of the officials who are still investigating the case. No charges have been filed yet.

Whatever information has been reported, to date, has mostly been bad for Stallworth leading to widespread speculation that he will most likely be charged with DUI (Driving Under the Influence) manslaughter under Florida law. If convicted of this crime he could be far away from the end zone, spending up to 15 years in prison

Recent Revelations ---Victim Reyes Not in Crosswalk When Struck

However, the most recent information released from the police directly is that pedestrian Reyes was not walking in the cross walk and may have been “jaywalking” at the time he was hit and killed. Further, Stallworth alleges he flashed his lights as he approached the victim.

These latest factual tidbits may not seem like a big deal to most, after all if Stallworth was legally drunk and he hit and killed Reyes then he is guilty of DUI manslaughter right? Not so fast. A look at the statute which it is conjectured that Stallworth may be charged with gives some insight as to why this jaywalking allegation may be very relevant as far as this NFL receiver’s future is concerned.

Florida DUI Manslaughter is Not a Strict Liability Statute

The section of Florida law relating to DUI manslaughter, Section 316.193, essentially states that any person who is operating a motor vehicle, under the influence (DUI), and by such operation causes or contributes to the death of any human being, commits DUI Manslaughter.

At first blush it may seem that all a prosecutor would have to prove in order to convict Stallworth was that he was driving his car with a blood alcohol content over the legal limit and he struck and killed Reyes. This would be case if this Florida statute was a strict liability statute…but it is not.

According to Florida case law to be convicted of DUI Manslaughter the above elements have to be proven AND it also has to be proven that there were some actions on the driver’s part which caused the accident that resulted in the death. In legal terms there must be the additional element of causation, usually in the form of negligence that is attributed to the driver, for all the elements of this law to be satisfactorily proven.

An Example of Unfair Results if the DUI Statute Was Strict Liability

As one Florida judge pointed out, think of the unfair result that would occur if the DUI Manslaughter statute was a strict liability statute and no causation on the part of the driver had to be proven:

You are in your car, very drunk, with a blood alcohol content well above the legal limit and you are stopped at a red light. A sober driver comes up behind you and smashes into the rear of your car, killing himself. If the Florida statue was strict liability you could be convicted of DWI manslaughter…you were DUI, operating your car, and contributed to the death of the sober driver who smashed into your rear.

To avoid such unfair results is the reason that most Florida courts have read a necessary element of some form of causation, usually in the form of negligence, on the part of the DUI driver in causing the accident which resulted in death before he can be convicted of DUI manslaughter.

The recent revelation of the victim Reyes jaywalking when he was struck goes to this very element…did the actions of Stallworth deviate from the normal standard of care and cause the accident to occur? Or was Reyes somehow culpable for the accident by being in the highway and not in the crosswalk? Can it be proven by an expert that a wholly sober driver would have struck Reyes?

In summary it is not going to be sufficient to charge, and ultimately convict Stallworth just by showing he was DUI and struck and killed Reyes with his auto.

Conclusion---Know a Bit About the Law and Wait For All the Facts to Come Out

The recent revelation in no way exonerates Stallworth by itself, nor does it mean if he is charged, and goes to trial, that additional facts won’t show that he negligently caused the accident resulting in Reyes death. It is just one small recent detail (the only one so far in Stallworth’s favor) that might give some food for thought and also suggest that we should know the law and wait for the all the facts before passing judgment.

Sparky Holden 2009

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Sources:

“Report: Cleveland Browns receiver Donte Stallworth was legally drunk in fatal accident,” Mary Kay Cabot, Plain Dealer Reporter, March 19, 2009;

“Police Still Investigating Stallworth Incident,” Jeff Schudel, New-Herald.com, March 16, 2009;

Baker v. State 377 So. 2d 17 (Fla. 1979) (Boyd, J., dissenting)

2008 Florida Statutes, Chapter 316, State Uniform Traffic Control, Section 316.193, et seq.