Donte Stallworth Pleads Not Guilty To Manslaughter Charges

Donte Stallworth's lawyer was in court today to plead not guilty to DUI manslaughter charges and will likely try to use the quirks of Florida law to reduce the charge and keep his client out of jail.

As you may have learned from the Jim Leyritz story, Florida law allows for drunk driving suspects to avoid harsher sentences if they can prove that the other party was at least partially responsible for any accidents. In other words, if a jury finds that the pedestrian who was killed contributed in some way to the incident—by jaywalking, for example—it won't matter that Stallworth was drunk. So the Cleveland wideout could see his case reduced to a misdemeanor DUI, the manslaughter charge could disappear, and he would not face prison time. His trial begins July 7.

I know Jack McCoy would never stand for that shit, but that's the real world for you.

Stallworth Pleads Not Guilty To DUI Manslaughter [CBS]