3 Sep 2014
When Phoenix Suns’ forward P.J. Tucker was pulled over in his Mercedes in Scottsdale this past May, police say he exhibited numerous signs of intoxication. They claim that Tucker’s speech was slurred and his eyes were bloodshot. They add that Tucker almost fell over when asked to perform field sobriety tests. Eventually, Tucker was arrested fur DUI (the Arizona equivalent of DWI) , and tests confirmed that his blood alcohol concentration (BAC) was .22. Under Arizona law, if you have a BAC of .15 or more, you can be charged with driving under the extreme influence of intoxicating liquor. Extreme DUI carries stiffer penalties than a standard DUI. Penalties grow even harsher if your BAC is .20 or greater; this is commonly referred to in Arizona as “super extreme DUI.” The law is similar to one in the Texas Penal Code, which provides for enhanced classification and potential penalties for a DWI when your BAC is 0.15 or more.
In any event, Tucker pleaded guilty, and was sentenced to three days in jail, a week and a half of home detention. In addition, he’ll have to have an ignition interlock device in his car for 18 months, attend substance abuse counseling, and pay fines totaling $2,750. Finally, Tucker will be on probation for up to five years.
This sounds like a fairly stiff sentence, especially in view of the fact that this was apparently Tucker’s first DUI. On the other hand, the BAC reading suggests that he was more than just a bit tipsy. In any event, that’s how the guilty plea was handled from the legal side. But what about the NBA? How did the league treat the conviction?
Well, all things considered, Tucker’s league penalty – a three game suspension without pay – doesn’t seem all that harsh. On the monetary side, just about all the players are multi-millionaires, and the money doesn’t seem to be much of deterrent. This appears to be true in Tucker’s case. We should also mention, as long as we’re on the subject, that while his case was pending, Tucker signed a new three-year, $16.5 million contract with the Suns.
Here are some of the other suspensions handed out by the league in 2014:
- DeJuan Blair of Dallas was handed a one-game suspension after kicking a San Antonio player in the head.
- Arnett Moultrie of the Philadelphia 76ers was suspended for five games for violating the league’s anti-drug policy.
- Ersan Ilyasova (Milwaukee Bucks) was suspended for one game for punching Reggie Evans of Sacramento in the stomach. Interestingly, when Reggie elbowed Anthony Davis (New Orleans) in the face, he got fined, but was not suspended.
- O.J Mayo (also of Milwaukee) was suspended for one game for punching Greg Stiemsa (New Orleans) in the throat.
- Nick Calathes (Memphis) was suspended for 20 games for violating the league’s anti-drug policy involving performance enhancing drugs.
We thought there would be a conclusion or two we could reach after reviewing some of the other recent league suspensions. All we can say is that the NBA’s view of the seriousness of DWI/DUI looks like it fits in somewhere between assault (or aggravated assault), on the one hand, and illegal drug use, on the other, with assault carrying the least of all the penalties.
Law Office of David D. White, PLLC
1201 Rio Grande Street #200
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 369-3737