Indazone
10-10-2008, 02:39 PM
Montgomery Gets Five Years in Prison
AP
posted: 1 HOUR 34 MINUTES AGO
NORFOLK, Va. (Oct. 10) - Disgraced former Olympic track star Tim Montgomery, once dubbed "the world's fastest man," was sentenced Friday to five years in prison for dealing heroin to an informant.
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Oct. 10: Former track star Tim Montgomery is sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to distributing heroin.
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Sports Figures Legal Woes (http://sports.aol.com/story/_a/bbdp/montgomery-gets-five-years-in-prison/207373?feeddeeplinkNum=0)
Oct. 10: Former track star Tim Montgomery is sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to distributing heroin.
Louis Lanzano, AP
Oct. 6: Astros reliever Brandon Backe is charged with interfering with a police officer and resisting arrest after a brawl at a wedding reception.
Jonathan Daniel, Getty Images
Oct. 6: Former Plymouth Argyle goalkeeper Luke McCormick is sentenced to seven years and four months in jail after causing the death of two young boys in a car accident. He was more than twice over the legal alcohol limit.
Christopher Furlong, Getty Images
Oct. 3: Former football star Lawrence Phillips, pictured here with the Dolphins in 1998, was sentenced to 10 years in prison, two years after he was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon. In August 2005, he drove onto a field near Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and his car struck two boys.
AFP / Getty Images
Sept. 30: Police want to talk to New York Mets pitcher Ambiorix Burgos after a crash involving his SUV left two women dead in the Dominican Republic.
Jim McIsaac, Getty Images
Sept. 30: Former Broncos running back Travis Henry was taken into federal custody on suspicion of knowingly and intentionally conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
Doug Pensinger, Getty Images
Sept. 28: New York Giants running back Danny Ware was arrested by police for standing in the middle of traffic while intoxicated.
Getty Images
Sept. 24: Former prep football star Maurice Simmons is sentenced to four years in prison for his role in a robbery.
Los Angeles Sheriff's Department / AP
Sept. 22: Former NFL kicker Tony Zendejas pleaded not guilty to charges of drugging and raping a female patron of his sports bar.
Otto Greule, Getty Images
Sept. 19: Kansas State player Leon Patton is charged with child abuse for allegedly shaking a 2-month-old.
Orlin Wagner, AP
"I was blind - I never had a job in my life," Montgomery told U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Friedman. "I did the wrong thing."
Montgomery, 33, will serve the five-year sentence after he completes a 46-month prison term for an unrelated conviction in New York.
Under an agreement with the government, he pleaded guilty in July to possession and distribution of more than 100 grams of heroin. He received the minimum term under federal sentencing guidelines.
A prosecutor described Montgomery's athletic skills as "super-human," but said he had squandered his talent and the acclaim and the money that came with it. Montgomery won an Olympic gold medal in the 400-meter relay at the 2000 games and a silver in the same event four years earlier. A doping scandal wiped his achievements from the books.
In a nearly empty courtroom, Montgomery accepted his sentence accompanied only by his lawyer, James Broccoletti. His parents and siblings traveled in a van from South Carolina for the sentencing, but did not arrive before the 20-minute hearing ended, Broccoletti said.
"What we find here is someone who has wrecked his life," the prosecutor, Eric M. Hurt, told the court.
He noted that Montgomery's heroin arrest came as he awaited sentencing on a check-kiting scheme that ultimately sent him to prison.
"He has chosen to ignore every benefit given to him," Hurt said.
Montgomery, hands clasped behind his back, softly addressed Friedman.
"I just want to say I've very sorry for what I've done," he told the judge. "I'm sorry to my community and my family."
Friedman ordered five years of supervised release and drug testing after Montgomery serves his heroin sentence. He also called Montgomery "totally irresponsible" for fathering four children with four different women, including fellow disgraced Olympian Marion Jones.
Montgomery's heroin prosecution is based on four drug sales he made in 2007 and 2008 in Norfolk and Virginia Beach. A Drug Enforcement Agency informant made buys that were either electronically videotaped, tape-recorded or witnessed by agents, according to court records.
Montgomery's Olympic medals and his world-record 9.78-second performance in the 100-meter dash were wiped clean after he was linked to the investigation of BALCO, the West Coast lab at the center of the steroid scandal in sports. He also was banned from track for two years.
While he never tested positive for drugs, he retired in December 2005 after the ban was imposed.
Last year, he admitted helping his former coach, Olympic champion Steve Riddick, and others cash $1.7 million in stolen and counterfeit checks.
Riddick is serving a five-year prison term. Montgomery's former companion, Jones, served a six-month prison sentence for lying to investigators about the check-fraud scam and using steroids.
AP
posted: 1 HOUR 34 MINUTES AGO
NORFOLK, Va. (Oct. 10) - Disgraced former Olympic track star Tim Montgomery, once dubbed "the world's fastest man," was sentenced Friday to five years in prison for dealing heroin to an informant.
Athletes in Trouble With the Law (javascript:soKe.pgPopUp('sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_athletes_legal_woes'))
http://www.aolcdn.com/_media/kegallerypub/blank.gif (javascript:soKe.pgPopUp('sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_athletes_legal_woes'))
Louis Lanzano, AP
79 photos
http://www.aolcdn.com/_media/kegallerypub/btn_back.jpg (javascript:soKe.pgPopUp('sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_athletes_legal_woes'))
http://www.aolcdn.com/_media/kegallerypub/btn_next.jpg (javascript:soKe.pgPopUp('sports-sports_wide_gallery_3_athletes_legal_woes'))
Oct. 10: Former track star Tim Montgomery is sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to distributing heroin.
(Note: Please disable your pop-up blocker)
Sports Figures Legal Woes (http://sports.aol.com/story/_a/bbdp/montgomery-gets-five-years-in-prison/207373?feeddeeplinkNum=0)
Oct. 10: Former track star Tim Montgomery is sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to distributing heroin.
Louis Lanzano, AP
Oct. 6: Astros reliever Brandon Backe is charged with interfering with a police officer and resisting arrest after a brawl at a wedding reception.
Jonathan Daniel, Getty Images
Oct. 6: Former Plymouth Argyle goalkeeper Luke McCormick is sentenced to seven years and four months in jail after causing the death of two young boys in a car accident. He was more than twice over the legal alcohol limit.
Christopher Furlong, Getty Images
Oct. 3: Former football star Lawrence Phillips, pictured here with the Dolphins in 1998, was sentenced to 10 years in prison, two years after he was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon. In August 2005, he drove onto a field near Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and his car struck two boys.
AFP / Getty Images
Sept. 30: Police want to talk to New York Mets pitcher Ambiorix Burgos after a crash involving his SUV left two women dead in the Dominican Republic.
Jim McIsaac, Getty Images
Sept. 30: Former Broncos running back Travis Henry was taken into federal custody on suspicion of knowingly and intentionally conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
Doug Pensinger, Getty Images
Sept. 28: New York Giants running back Danny Ware was arrested by police for standing in the middle of traffic while intoxicated.
Getty Images
Sept. 24: Former prep football star Maurice Simmons is sentenced to four years in prison for his role in a robbery.
Los Angeles Sheriff's Department / AP
Sept. 22: Former NFL kicker Tony Zendejas pleaded not guilty to charges of drugging and raping a female patron of his sports bar.
Otto Greule, Getty Images
Sept. 19: Kansas State player Leon Patton is charged with child abuse for allegedly shaking a 2-month-old.
Orlin Wagner, AP
"I was blind - I never had a job in my life," Montgomery told U.S. District Judge Jerome B. Friedman. "I did the wrong thing."
Montgomery, 33, will serve the five-year sentence after he completes a 46-month prison term for an unrelated conviction in New York.
Under an agreement with the government, he pleaded guilty in July to possession and distribution of more than 100 grams of heroin. He received the minimum term under federal sentencing guidelines.
A prosecutor described Montgomery's athletic skills as "super-human," but said he had squandered his talent and the acclaim and the money that came with it. Montgomery won an Olympic gold medal in the 400-meter relay at the 2000 games and a silver in the same event four years earlier. A doping scandal wiped his achievements from the books.
In a nearly empty courtroom, Montgomery accepted his sentence accompanied only by his lawyer, James Broccoletti. His parents and siblings traveled in a van from South Carolina for the sentencing, but did not arrive before the 20-minute hearing ended, Broccoletti said.
"What we find here is someone who has wrecked his life," the prosecutor, Eric M. Hurt, told the court.
He noted that Montgomery's heroin arrest came as he awaited sentencing on a check-kiting scheme that ultimately sent him to prison.
"He has chosen to ignore every benefit given to him," Hurt said.
Montgomery, hands clasped behind his back, softly addressed Friedman.
"I just want to say I've very sorry for what I've done," he told the judge. "I'm sorry to my community and my family."
Friedman ordered five years of supervised release and drug testing after Montgomery serves his heroin sentence. He also called Montgomery "totally irresponsible" for fathering four children with four different women, including fellow disgraced Olympian Marion Jones.
Montgomery's heroin prosecution is based on four drug sales he made in 2007 and 2008 in Norfolk and Virginia Beach. A Drug Enforcement Agency informant made buys that were either electronically videotaped, tape-recorded or witnessed by agents, according to court records.
Montgomery's Olympic medals and his world-record 9.78-second performance in the 100-meter dash were wiped clean after he was linked to the investigation of BALCO, the West Coast lab at the center of the steroid scandal in sports. He also was banned from track for two years.
While he never tested positive for drugs, he retired in December 2005 after the ban was imposed.
Last year, he admitted helping his former coach, Olympic champion Steve Riddick, and others cash $1.7 million in stolen and counterfeit checks.
Riddick is serving a five-year prison term. Montgomery's former companion, Jones, served a six-month prison sentence for lying to investigators about the check-fraud scam and using steroids.