NFL boss punishes Browns' Stallworth

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell came down hard on Browns receiver Dont? Stallworth on Thursday, suspending him indefinitely without pay and warning him that his discipline from the league for killing a pedestrian while driving drunk will be severe. "The conduct reflected in your guilty plea resulted in the tragic loss of life and was inexcusable," Goodell said in a letter to Stall- worth. "While the criminal justice system has determined the legal consequences of this incident, it is my responsibility as NFL commissioner to determine appropriate league discipline for your actions, which have caused irreparable harm to the victim and his family, your club, your fellow players and the NFL." Goodell told Stallworth, who began his 30-day jail sentence Tuesday, that he would meet with his representatives "in due course" before determining the length of the suspension. But judging from the strong language in the letter, Stall- worth can expect to be suspended for a year or more. Goodell made it clear that Stallworth's conduct, which led to a DUI manslaughter conviction, violated both the NFL's Personal Conduct and Substances of Abuse policies - and that he could harshly reprimand him for just one of those. "In this case, there is ample evidence to warrant significant discipline under both policies," Goodell said. Browns General Manager George Kokinis said in a statement released by the club last night, "We support the action taken by the commissioner today and will continue to work closely with the league regarding this matter." Stallworth's attorney, David Cornwell, said in a statement he hopes Goodell will consider Stallworth's good character, clean record and willingness to accept responsibility for his actions in making his decis- ion. "We fully anticipate that the factors that supported the 'just resolution' of the criminal matter will be equally persuasive with Commissioner Goodell," Cornwell wrote. Stallworth's indefinite suspension is effective immediately because Goodell determined "there is no reasonable dispute that your continued eligibility for participation at this time would undermine the integrity of and public confidence in our league. . . . Pending my final determination, you will not be permitted to visit the club's facility or participate in any team activities." The indefinite suspension also means Stallworth most likely will not set foot in Berea after his jail term. He also will spend two years on house arrest, eight years on probation, perform 1,000 hours of community service and lose his driver's license for life for killing Mario Reyes with his Bentley on March 14. Stallworth's blood-alcohol level was .126, well above Florida's legal limit of 0.08. The house-arrest provisions would permit him to play Football. Goodell is expected to hand down the actual suspension before Browns training camp opens Aug. 1. But two things working against Stallworth are the fact that "alcohol-related violations of the law will not be tolerated" by the league, according to the release Thursday, and that he was already involved in the NFL's substance-abuse program. "The level of discipline is significantly increased in cases involving aggravating circumstances and / or repeat offenses," the release stated. Despite the impending suspension and the distractions involved with keeping Stallworth, the Browns might not cut him this season because of salary-cap implications. If they release him, he would cost the Browns about $7.6 million on their cap - or about 6 percent of the team's $128 million salary-cap space. Conceivably, he could remain property of the Browns all season, but not play a down. Stallworth earned a $4.5 million bonus from the Browns the night before the accident, which he'll keep because the Browns cannot recoup it. For every game he's suspended, he'll lose $43,823 - or 1/17th of his $745,000 base salary. In 1999, St. Louis' Leonard Little was suspended eight games by the NFL after killing a woman while driving drunk, but that was long before Goodell took over in 2006 and immediately cracked down on misconduct. In 2007, Goodell suspended Adam "Pacman" Jones for one year after a series of incidents, including a fight and shooting at a Las Vegas strip club that paralyzed a man. To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: mcabot@plaind.com, 216-999-4670