Stallworthless

How much is the life of a human worth? Have you ever considered what the price of your life would be? What about a loved one? Does the price vary considering how long the person has been alive or what they did while alive? Do you think the very question is repulsive? If you do you're definitely not alone. The hard truth is that the law allows for that very question to be realized.

I am from Georgia originally, I moved to L.A. in 2009 about a year and a half removed from one of, if not the biggest, sports scandal in Atlanta history. Michael Vick, star quarterback for the Falcons had been convicted of operating or knowing of an operation of dog fighting on his property in his home state of Virginia. Michael Vick received 23 months in prison with the last three months being house arrested, he is scheduled to complete his sentence on July 20th. This trial split Atlanta down the middle. I was working for a local sports radio station at the time and went to several Falcons games that season. The city was a mix of outrage and utter indifference. One side viewed the situation as just another punk athlete getting too big for himself and paying the consequences. The other side viewed this as an act of justice strengthened by special interest groups persecuting a man for a victimless crime. The main portion of the argument was whether or not the sentence fit the crime. Measured against other crimes, how did this sentence for the deaths of animals measure with other major crimes of drug/weapon possession or assault/murder. I was originally on the side of "Vick got what he deserved," until recently.

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth was driving drunk on March 14 in Florida when he struck and killed a pedestrian. Charged and convicted of DUI manslaughter.

Pretty hefty terms in the judicial world. Stallworth's sentence you ask? If a man was given 23 months in prison for the violent death of innocent animals then the DUI slaying of an innocent man must be life without parole. Wrong. For murdering an innocent man Stallworth received 30 DAYS in prison. How does something like this happen in a country that prides itself on Liberty and Justice? Here's the important part, Stallworth reached a "confidential" cash settlement with the relatives of the victim. Until this moment, all of the arguments and complaining about Michael Vick getting a rough treatment over some dogs went in one ear and out the other for me. Most of these people, I told my self very self righteously, were just exalting the game of football over what was right and they were more upset at the loss of a quarterback than seeing justice done. Now, I have to admit they may have a point.

So the question was raised again. How much does a human life cost? How misguided are the priorities of America that we place so much emphasis on buying power that the common belief is that green purchasing squares can buy happiness or in some cases replace a loved one? 30 days for killing a human being. That's the bottom line, forget the arrogance of offering anything but condolences and apologies to the family especially trying to buy their pain. "I feel bad but, um, I really wanna play football so, would you take this money so I can go do that." That's is all Stallworth's fault. The family actually accepting the money, is society's fault.

Let's compare Michael Vick's 23 months with some other sports crimes.

1998 - Leonard Little, NFL St. Louis Rams. Drives drunk and kills a wife and mother. 90 days in prison.

2000 - Ray Lewis, NFL Baltimore Ravens. Was charged with, a later acquitted of manslaughter of two men after several witnesses recanted their testimony. Lewis plead guilty to obstruction of justice and testified against two people he was in the same limo with, and originally tried to protect. He never spent a day in jail.

2004 - Jamaal Lewis, NFL Ravens/Browns. Was charged with conspiring to possess and distribute a copious amount of cocaine. Spent 4 months in prison.

That's in the old U.S. of A. Let's compare that to a case from Venezuela. MLB relief pitcher Ugueth Urbina was arrested for the attempted murder of five people. Long story short, Urbina attacked five farmers on his property in Venezuela with a machete and gasoline and no one was killed. Urbina received 14 YEARS in prison and his professional baseball career is over.

You kill, or even try to kill, somebody anywhere else in the world and they put you in a place where you can't do that anymore and they throw away the key. Here, we ask if you would like to donate to the empty hole left in your victim's families. We slap your hand and say shame on you but don't worry we'll have you back in time for the big game. That is of course unless you hurt an animal. Hurt an animal and we'll call you an animal. Put you in a cage and make you respect animals. Hurt a human and you get treated humanely. I guess we'll just have to wait until animals learn to care about money, then we can buy them off too.

III,