| | LOS ANGELES -- Fourteen UCLA football players plan to plead
guilty to illegally possessing handicapped parking permits and will
be sentenced to do community service with the disabled and pay
fines, a source told the Associated Press on Tuesday.
The deal, which was to be finalized before a hearing Wednesday,
calls for the players to work with the Special Olympics and other
groups dealing with the physically handicapped.
Rafer Johnson, the 1960 Olympic decathlon champion who now is a
Special Olympics board member, helped to negotiate for the players
and will appear at their plea hearing, according to the source, who
spoke on condition of anonymity.
Each player will be required to do 200 hours -- or five weeks --
of service and will receive a fine of $150, the source said.
The players to be arraigned are:
Damian Allen, defensive back who quit the team last season.
Marques Anderson, part-time starter in the secondary.
Ali Abdul Azziz, reserve linebacker last season.
Oscar Cabrera, starting guard.
Deatra Clinton, walk-on linebacker in 1995 and '96 (he is charged with two counts after obtaining two of the placards.)
James Ghezzi, reserve offensive lineman.
DuVal Hicks, defensive back who was a senior last season.
Ryan Nece, starting outside linebacker.
Durell Price, starting fullback.
Mark Reynosa, played on special teams last year as a senior.
Ryan Roques, expected to start at cornerback.
Robert Thomas, a reserve linebacker.
Craig Walendy, who split time with at fullback last season as a senior.
Tony White, the starting middle linebacker.
The football players allegedly used the placards to avoid paying
for parking on campus or in the area around UCLA, where parking
problems are chronic.
One of the players is expected to speak in court, representing
the group.
The prosecutor, deputy city attorney Brian Williams, confirmed
that negotiations were under way toward pleas that would involve
probation, community service and fines.
"There is a strong likelihood that there will be a
disposition," Williams said.
The misdemeanor charges carry a maximum sentence of 6 months in
jail and a $1,000 fine.
The case sparked outrage among advocacy groups for the disabled.
The players are expected to express remorse for their actions.
The investigation began Jan. 16 when a UCLA police officer
spotted a car with an improperly placed handicapped placard, Mike
Qualls, a spokesman for the city attorney, said. The driver told
the officer he had borrowed the placard from a football player, and
an investigation began.
Thirteen defendants were each charged with a count of illegally
possessing a handicapped placard and a count of giving false
information to the California Department of Motor Vehicles. One
person allegedly obtained two placards and was charged with four
misdemeanor counts.
It was more than an embarrassment to UCLA, which starts its
football season on Sept. 4, because several of the defendants are
starters or key reserves.
Coach Bob Toledo had said the players also would be disciplined
by him, but he was on vacation and unavailable for comment Tuesday.
The players allegedly submitted applications to the DMV with the
signatures, addresses and medical license numbers of nonexistent
physicians. They listed a litany of complaints: knee injuries, back
injuries, back surgery, a torn ligament, Bell's Palsy, asthma.
All the claims were bogus, Qualls said.
Abuse of the handicapped parking law is not uncommon, officials
said, although usually it involves simply taking the parking space
or using the permit of a friend or relative. | |
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