A Nice Quiet Basketball Player Who Kept To Himself

Usually they kill cats first, but in this case it was a dog.

I normally don't post crime stories (outside of the South Florida beat), but my attention was called to this development in the Jayson Williams trial.

Mr. Williams, 35, a former star with the New Jersey Nets, is accused of aggravated manslaughter, manslaughter and two weapons charges in the death of Mr. Christofi. He is also charged with four crimes relating to an attempt to cover up the shooting, including tampering with evidence and tampering with witnesses.

Katharine Errickson, an assistant Hunterdon County prosecutor, said the shooting of the dog undercut the defense contention that the fatal shooting of Mr. Christofi was a tragic accident. Ms. Errickson said Mr. Williams had a history of recklessly handling guns after drinking.

In the hours before Mr. Christofi's death, Mr. Williams and several friends, including four members of the Harlem Globetrotters, had been drinking at a restaurant near the Williams estate.

The dog was shot, Ms. Errickson said, in August 2001, about six months before Mr. Christofi was killed, after Mr. Williams had been drinking in a restaurant with two friends, including Dwayne Schintzius, a former professional basketball player who was staying at Mr. Williams's estate at the time. Ms. Errickson said prosecutors learned of the shooting in an anonymous letter mailed to them.

She said detectives later learned that the watchdog was killed over a $100 bet. After the three men returned to Mr. Williams's estate from the restaurant, Mr. Schintzius bet Mr. Williams $100 he could drag the dog out of the home, Ms. Errickson said. Mr. Williams accepted the bet, she said. Mr. Schintzius then grabbed the Rottweiler by its hind legs and pulled it from the house.

Mr. Williams left the room, and Mr. Schintzius thought he would return with the $100, Ms. Errickson said. Instead, she went on, he came back with a shotgun and fired two rounds at the dog, nearly decapitating it. Ms. Errickson said that Mr. Williams then reloaded the weapon, pointed it at Mr. Schintzius and told him, using a profanity, to get the "dog off my porch or you're next."

Maybe one of my lawyer readers could explain in the comments section why the jury should not (or is not) allowed to hear about this.

posted by Michael 3:59:13 PM

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