DTrain arrested in Miami Beach for DUI

[pierremvp1]

I'm not playing the race card. I initially brought up the possibility of a prejudice issue in response to what Marlinsfan4life wrote. What he wrote is true for most cops. And I would think that being a famous personality would only enhance the cop's option to use their discretion and thus be owed a favor by the celebrity. Mickey Mantle used to get rides home from cops who caught him DUI. Just about every time we hear about substance abuse amongst athletes or other celebs, they say that they often received preferential treatment from cops. Of course, if you become belligerent and pull a Mel Gibson then you're not going to get the cop's discretion. Being the son of a cop I have to say the Cop was an a**hole, I would've done one of the two things if I would've pulled Willis over.

 

1. Tell him "Dtrain call one of your buddies to come pick you up."

 

or

 

2.Take his keys throw them inside his car and lock the doors make his ass walk home or take a cab.

[TSwift25]

At least he doesn't beat his wife, fake injuries, play scared, throw teammates and/or coaches under the bus, and tell us he doesn't want to be a role model.

 

I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt until he says his part.

 

And let's just take this a step further, I bet the first thing going through Dontrelle and his agent's heads this morning was "thank God he's on the Marlins."

 

Just since I'm in the mood to make lemonade out of lemons.

[Wild Card]

Could be the police officer was prejudiced? In my work, I've spoken at length in casual conversations with police and deputies. Overall, they're just like you and me. But I have met a couple who were blatantly prejudiced. They'd love to arrest Dontrelle, but they'd let any white pitcher go with a warning. This does apply to just 2 of the 40 or so policemen and women that I've known.

You have got to be kidding me.

yeah, seriously. people aren't racist anymore. that's SO 1800's.

Yep, D-Train did nothing wrong. Forget the fact that he could not even maintain his balance while standing and refused the field sobriety test, the REAL reason he was arrested was because he was black!

 

He actually refused the Breathalyzer, which is very different from a field sobriety test. And refusing a Breathalyzer when intoxicated is the smartest thing to do when you know you're over the legal limit anyway. If you take it and fail, you WILL be arrested and you WILL be prosecuted. If you refuse to take it, you will be arrested but not prosecuted, because there is no way you can actually prove the person was inebriated. This was advice given to me by a Broward County Officer.

[Fish Tank Frenzy]

Could be the police officer was prejudiced? In my work, I've spoken at length in casual conversations with police and deputies. Overall, they're just like you and me. But I have met a couple who were blatantly prejudiced. They'd love to arrest Dontrelle, but they'd let any white pitcher go with a warning. This does apply to just 2 of the 40 or so policemen and women that I've known.

You have got to be kidding me.

yeah, seriously. people aren't racist anymore. that's SO 1800's.

Yep, D-Train did nothing wrong. Forget the fact that he could not even maintain his balance while standing and refused the field sobriety test, the REAL reason he was arrested was because he was black!

 

He actually refused the Breathalyzer, which is very different from a field sobriety test. And refusing a Breathalyzer when intoxicated is the smartest thing to do when you know you're over the legal limit anyway. If you take it and fail, you WILL be arrested and you WILL be prosecuted. If you refuse to take it, you will be arrested but not prosecuted, because there is no way you can actually prove the person was inebriated. This was advice given to me by a Broward County Officer.

This is very true. At the sametime he will have his license revoked for one year per Florida law. If he does fail a DUI test and gets prosecuted he would lose his license and have possible jail time, but first offenses usually dont carry jail time.

[MarlinFan10]

I'm going to see how Dontrelle handles this before I judge him. I'm absolutly shocked though and really didn't know what to think after I heard this.

[poptart]

It would be silly to make excuses for Dontrelle Willis. DUI is a serious charge.

 

That being said, I'm not going to bury the guy either. We have all made mistakes. Some of us have made that mistake, and been lucky to escape trouble. To say, or write, anything else would be hypocrisy.

 

This story should do one thing: it should simply remind all of us in the media, and all of you in the public, that no athlete is as perfect as he is portrayed, just as no athlete is as imperfect as he is portrayed. Everybody's human. Mistakes are made. (Heck, I'd struggle to find someone who made more stupid mistakes in the past 12 months than I have). Some people just put on a better face in public.

 

I still like Dontrelle. He's a good interview and a very good teammate, and I believe his sunny demeanor is genuine. I also believe he will make the best of this situation.

http://blogs.sun-sentinel.com/sports_seaso...elles_arre.html

[DelGOT2Rings]

Could be the police officer was prejudiced? In my work, I've spoken at length in casual conversations with police and deputies. Overall, they're just like you and me. But I have met a couple who were blatantly prejudiced. They'd love to arrest Dontrelle, but they'd let any white pitcher go with a warning. This does apply to just 2 of the 40 or so policemen and women that I've known.

You have got to be kidding me.

yeah, seriously. people aren't racist anymore. that's SO 1800's.

Yep, D-Train did nothing wrong. Forget the fact that he could not even maintain his balance while standing and refused the field sobriety test, the REAL reason he was arrested was because he was black!

 

He actually refused the Breathalyzer, which is very different from a field sobriety test. And refusing a Breathalyzer when intoxicated is the smartest thing to do when you know you're over the legal limit anyway. If you take it and fail, you WILL be arrested and you WILL be prosecuted. If you refuse to take it, you will be arrested but not prosecuted, because there is no way you can actually prove the person was inebriated. This was advice given to me by a Broward County Officer.

I've heard that before from people, but I also remember hearing that there's a catch to that as well. Maybe Florida state laws are different than the ones up here...

The catch is that you automatically lose your license (for I believe 6 months) for failing to submit to the test. However, it is by far the best thing to do if you think you MIGHT fail, because you can hire a DUI lawyer to contest the field sobriety test, the cause for the arrest, etc. Basically, you can beat the conviction with a good lawyer. However, as soon as you blow into the device, and it says your drunk, there is nothing you can do. Johnny Cochran can't change the numbers. And, if it is a first offebnnse, sometimes the Judge will allow you to drive to work, etc. Basic stuff. So, at least D-Train had good advice.

[Marlin Nation]

Basically everyone I know over 21 has driven drunk at one point in thier life so I can't really judge D-Train too harshly, sh*t happens and he got caught.

[freedrinks23]

Basically everyone I know over 21 has driven drunk at one point in thier life so I can't really judge D-Train too harshly, sh*t happens and he got caught.

Marlin Nation you are on point. The only people I know who don't drink and drive are people who don't drink at all. Especially in Miami, sheesh. If you don't drive everywhere in South Florida, it means you don't have a car. And if you don't drink in Miami, it means you don't belong here, this is the party capital of the western hemisphere right now.

 

Like someone said previously, I'm sure D-Train was barely above the legal limit. Ultra-conservative just-say-no bs laws have turned a glass of wine with dinner into drunk driving. Only a major fat lard can go to a bar these days and not exceed the legal limit. It's preposterous. In my opinion, any responsible person can have 8 beers or less in an evening and drive home without difficulty, and should be able to do so without harassment. Irresponsible people get in accidents when they're sober, so they're irrelevant to this topic. DUI is crap and like someone else said, your first one should be thrown out immediately anyways.

[Libelula]

Hmm, so because everyone else does it, it's alright?

[Ramp]

Hmm, so because everyone else does it, it's alright?

no one has said that(besides odom)

[BroncoBob27]

I don't want to downplay Dontrelle's actions but he made one bad decision that turned into several bad decisions. I have all the confidence that Dontrelle will apologize to the public, explain to the kids, learn from his mistake and be back better than ever. In the end I think his talk from Mama Willis will far more intense than the legal side of this.

 

I will say one thing that is not part of the story. Married men should not be out on South Beach at 4am. I have no idea if his wife was with him but if she was I would think he would have been bailed out sooner than he was.

 

"Married men should not be out on South Beach at 4am."??????? I think you take that ball and chain joke a little too serious. Have you never heard of a man's/woman's night out? It dosen't mean they are out looking for a little something on the side. Just out to have some fun with friends. Or do you believe married people shouldn't be allowed to have fun with friends? Or that the club scene is for singles only?

[BroncoBob27]

The only thing that shocks me about this story is that D-Train drives a Bentley. I know he made a few million through arbitration last year, and he is set to make oodles more, but a Bentley is a big-time car. He was probably driving a Civic before it...quite a step up.

 

A Bentley is not a multi-million dollar car. Kind of the "poor man's Rolls Royce", so to speak. What surprises me about his choice of vehicles is that it isn't a flashy sports car or large SUV. Although the new Bentley convertables are alot sportier looking than Bentley of past times. And I doubt very much DTrain was driving anything like a Civic before this ride. He's been making pretty good cash since his call up in '03, compared to Joe Blow on the street. And he did pull in well over $4 mil last year. Also in Feb of '03 he totaled out a fairly new Mustang convertible by blowing out a tire and rolling it a few times (non-alcohol related). Appears his tastes are not towards the no frills ride.

I refuse to pass judgement on him for this one incident. Looks to be a youthful indiscretion, albeit a big one. I figure he learned a valuable lesson that only temporarily hurt his wallet. And thankfully didn't hurt anything or anyone else.

[BroncoBob27]

I'm not playing the race card. I initially brought up the possibility of a prejudice issue in response to what Marlinsfan4life wrote. What he wrote is true for most cops. And I would think that being a famous personality would only enhance the cop's option to use their discretion and thus be owed a favor by the celebrity. Mickey Mantle used to get rides home from cops who caught him DUI. Just about every time we hear about substance abuse amongst athletes or other celebs, they say that they often received preferential treatment from cops.

 

 

Yea you are playing the race card. But it was only a matter of time before someone did it. And the Mickey Mantle thing?? Take it a bit farther. Legend has it Ty Cobb pistol whipped a guy to death in a drunken rampage and it was all covered up. Listen, lots of things were different in those days. Athletes, Hollywood stars, and politicians were given alot more flexability as far as the law went and the press coverage of it. Be glad we aren't in those days any longer. Even if the press does get carried away with it more often than not.

[Starbrownies]

Bad for baseball. :thumbdown

[Hotcorner]

"Married men should not be out on South Beach at 4am."??????? I think you take that ball and chain joke a little too serious. Have you never heard of a man's/woman's night out? It dosen't mean they are out looking for a little something on the side. Just out to have some fun with friends. Or do you believe married people shouldn't be allowed to have fun with friends? Or that the club scene is for singles only?

 

So you'd be okay with your wife out at South Beach at 4 am?

 

 

As for the drinking... there are times in my past that I could've been pulled over & was over the legal limit. Doesn't make it right of course. But I don't judge him any differently than I did before. Lots of people cut loose from time to time, especially when they're his age. Is it irresponsible? Absolutely.

[JetsMania]

"Married men should not be out on South Beach at 4am."??????? I think you take that ball and chain joke a little too serious. Have you never heard of a man's/woman's night out? It dosen't mean they are out looking for a little something on the side. Just out to have some fun with friends. Or do you believe married people shouldn't be allowed to have fun with friends? Or that the club scene is for singles only?

 

So you'd be okay with your wife out at South Beach at 4 am?

 

 

As for the drinking... there are times in my past that I could've been pulled over & was over the legal limit. Doesn't make it right of course. But I don't judge him any differently than I did before. Lots of people cut loose from time to time, especially when they're his age. Is it irresponsible? Absolutely.

 

You have to say yes, if you ever are out until 4am. As long as she stays with her friends it doesnt matter how late she stays out imo.

 

If your wife was at some local bar near your house at 4am and not south beach, would anyone have an issue?

[Hammerhead]

I wonder how this will impact his career in 2008.

[TSwift25]

The only thing that shocks me about this story is that D-Train drives a Bentley. I know he made a few million through arbitration last year, and he is set to make oodles more, but a Bentley is a big-time car. He was probably driving a Civic before it...quite a step up.

 

A Bentley is not a multi-million dollar car. Kind of the "poor man's Rolls Royce", so to speak.

 

I know this is completely unrelated, but either car company charges more than the average American's home for their cars. Bentley and Rolls both have models that go well north of $300,000.

 

Just saying...

[geemoney]

Basically everyone I know over 21 has driven drunk at one point in thier life so I can't really judge D-Train too harshly, sh*t happens and he got caught.

Marlin Nation you are on point. The only people I know who don't drink and drive are people who don't drink at all. Especially in Miami, sheesh. If you don't drive everywhere in South Florida, it means you don't have a car. And if you don't drink in Miami, it means you don't belong here, this is the party capital of the western hemisphere right now.

 

Like someone said previously, I'm sure D-Train was barely above the legal limit. Ultra-conservative just-say-no bs laws have turned a glass of wine with dinner into drunk driving. Only a major fat lard can go to a bar these days and not exceed the legal limit. It's preposterous. In my opinion, any responsible person can have 8 beers or less in an evening and drive home without difficulty, and should be able to do so without harassment. Irresponsible people get in accidents when they're sober, so they're irrelevant to this topic. DUI is crap and like someone else said, your first one should be thrown out immediately anyways.

Well, from the stories, he had watery, bloodshot eyes, was confused and disoriented, had slurred speech and urinated in public. Does that sound like barely above the legal limit?

[Strike 3]

Most people make a few stupid and dangerous mistakes when they are young. How Dontrelle handles this and conducts himself going forward will show what kind of character he has. IMO, he must be incredibly ashamed and embarrassed and I think it's unlikely he will make the same mistake again.

 

Some people rationalize their mistakes and never learn from them. I just don't think Dontrelle is that type of person. He was lucky that something worse did not happen and I believe he's smart and responsible enough to realize that.

 

On another note, those saying that everyone urinates in public -- WTF?! Were you raised by wolves?

[Marlin Nation]

I think he his goody-two-shoe image isn't a construction but for real, he did something stupid but not necessarily morally outrageous and I think he will be very contrite and feel genuinely humiliated.

[pierremvp1]

Basically everyone I know over 21 has driven drunk at one point in thier life so I can't really judge D-Train too harshly, sh*t happens and he got caught.

Marlin Nation you are on point. The only people I know who don't drink and drive are people who don't drink at all. Especially in Miami, sheesh. If you don't drive everywhere in South Florida, it means you don't have a car. And if you don't drink in Miami, it means you don't belong here, this is the party capital of the western hemisphere right now.

 

Like someone said previously, I'm sure D-Train was barely above the legal limit. Ultra-conservative just-say-no bs laws have turned a glass of wine with dinner into drunk driving. Only a major fat lard can go to a bar these days and not exceed the legal limit. It's preposterous. In my opinion, any responsible person can have 8 beers or less in an evening and drive home without difficulty, and should be able to do so without harassment. Irresponsible people get in accidents when they're sober, so they're irrelevant to this topic. DUI is crap and like someone else said, your first one should be thrown out immediately anyways.

Well, from the stories, he had watery, bloodshot eyes, was confused and disoriented, had slurred speech and urinated in public. Does that sound like barely above the legal limit?

It sounds to me like the description of your average Jets(Mets) fan.

[Fish4Life]

Willis mum, awaits legal advice

By Joe Frisaro / MLB.com

 

MIAMI -- Before speaking publicly about his Friday DUI arrest, Marlins pitcher Dontrelle Willis is consulting with his legal team.

 

Returning a phone call to MLB.com on Saturday afternoon, Willis said because of legal reasons, he cannot speak publicly at this time. However, he is discussing with his attorney what he can say, and he hopes to deliver some sort of statement soon.

 

Willis is being represented by attorney Walter Reynoso, the uncle of the pitcher's wife, Natalee Vitagliano. The pitcher, who turns 25 in January, was married earlier this month.

 

The two-time All-Star left-hander was charged with DUI near a South Beach night club around 4 a.m. ET Friday.

 

A fan favorite since being called up by the Marlins in May 2003, Willis has emerged into an elite pitcher and one of the game's most marketable young stars.

 

Willis said Saturday that he has been returning and making a number of phone calls. He says he is fine, and that some reporters have shown up at his South Florida home.

 

At the appropriate time, Willis plans to comment. For now, he is respecting the legal system, and he's following the necessary process.

 

The fine for a first DUI conviction is not less than $250, nor more than $500, according to Florida law. Additionally, among the punishments Willis could face are a mandatory 50 hours of community service and a suspended license for one year for refusing to take a Breathalyzer test.

 

The Marlins have made no comment on Willis' arrest.

 

Willis is arbitration-eligible and is in line to earn around $6.5 million in 2007. He is Florida's all-time victory leader with 58. In 2005, he paced the Major Leagues with 22 wins.

 

The National League Rookie of the Year in 2003, Willis has repeatedly been praised for his achievements on and off the field. The past two years he has been the Marlins' Roberto Clemente Award nominee, which is presented to players who are productive on the field and active in the community.

 

Joe Frisaro is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

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[Libelula]

Hmm, so because everyone else does it, it's alright?

no one has said that(besides odom)

I was talking to Marlin Nation.