Donte Stallworth and You: Why We're Different

(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Life kept me away from a computer this morning, so I’m late to the Donte Stallworth sentencing party.

Perusing the site, I saw a few takes on the situation and wondered, “What can I add to the discussion?”

We’ve learned that Stallworth has very good lawyers and that killing a man obviously merits a lower sentence than killing some dogs in the modern court system.

We’ve also learned that money tends to solve a lot of problems, no matter how deep the proverbial hole you’ve dug yourself into is.

And that, my friends, is the hook upon which I shall hang my hat.

Stallworth, quite simply, has a lot of money. He made more money ($4.5 million) on his roster bonus the day before he killed Mario Reyes than most people will ever make in their entire lives. 

For the crime of DUI manslaughter of Reyes on March 14, Stallworth has been sentenced to 30 days in jail—which he can complete before training camp starts July 31—two years house arrest, eight years probation, 1,000 hours of community service, and a lifetime suspension of his driver’s license.

A corollary to that is Stallworth may apply for limited driving privileges, such as for employment, in five years.

For a man who could’ve afforded a driver that night, this sentence strikes just about everyone I’ve talked to as a ridiculous miscarriage of justice.

Or is it?

I ask this question in the most serious manner. A miscarriage of justice assumes something out of the ordinary happened, thus letting a perpetrator off the hook without receiving a just punishment.

Throughout history, the rich have traditionally bought their way out of serving jail time.

Why should this case be seen in a different light?

“This is America!” you cry.

Yes, it is. This is the country that freed O.J. Simpson for a double murder that even he’s allegedly admitted to in a backhanded, “fictional,” way. The fact he was sent to jail last year for armed robbery only proves the point. By 2008, most of his money was gone and he’d become a pariah in society.

Without the money to buy the best attorney, a favorable jury, and sway public opinion, he had to face justice just like the rest of us.

While Stallworth hadn’t quite attained the level of fame Simpson had, he had a lot of money to buy the best attorney available and was able to cut a deal with the Reyes family that the prosecutor signed off on.

To look at it in another way, the average “Joe” committing DUI manslaughter is going to get significant jail time plus all the other fines and conditions. But the average person doesn’t have a $35 million contract he can fall back on.

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