Cleveland Browns receiver Donte’ Stallworth was suspended without pay for this season Thursday after pleading guilty to killing a pedestrian while driving drunk. He cannot participate in any team activities until his reinstatement after the Super Bowl.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Stallworth placed a “stain” on the reputation of the league and all its players.

Stallworth struck 59-year-old Mario Reyes on March 14 in Miami. He pleaded guilty June 16 to DUI manslaughter, a second-degree felony, and was suspended indefinitely by Goodell two days later.

Stallworth drew a 30-day jail sentence and reached an undisclosed financial settlement with the family of Reyes, who was leaving his crane operator job when he was struck.

In a letter to Stallworth released by the NFL, Goodell said he didn’t take into account the sentence in determining the 28-year-old player violated the league’s substances of abuse and personal conduct policies.

“Your conduct endangered yourself and others, leading to the death of an innocent man,” Goodell wrote. “The NFL and NFL players must live with the stain that you have placed on their reputations.”

Goodell held a hearing with Stallworth, his representatives and union officials Aug. 5. He also met privately with Stallworth on Monday at the player’s request.

Police said Stallworth had spent the night drinking at a Miami Beach club and had a blood-alcohol level of .126, above Florida’s .08 legal limit. Besides jail time, his sentence included two years of house arrest, eight years of probation and other restrictions.

A college star at Tennessee, Stallworth has also played for the New England Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles and New Orleans Saints. His first year with Cleveland was marred by injuries. He hurt his leg in training camp, which sidelined him for most of the season.

The Browns signed him to a seven-year, $35 million contract in 2008, hoping he could be a complementary No. 2 receiver and take pressure off Braylon Edwards. But Stallworth never got going because of the injury and made only seven starts. Edwards spent the season dropping important passes and Cleveland finished a disappointing 4-12.

Once it became apparent Stallworth could miss time, the Browns signed 12-year veteran David Patten and drafted Brian Robiskie and Mohammed Massaquoi in April to add depth at receiver.

Related

VIDEO: Donte Stallworth Speaks For The First Time Since Fatal Accident

NFL’s Stallworth Pleads Guilty To Manslaughter Gets 30 Days

This past March, Donte Stallworth, an NFL player for the Cleveland Browns, killed Mario Reyes while driving drunk in Miami. Donte was eventually sentenced to 30 days in jail, and now he is on probation and subject to community service.

Tonight, Stallworth will speak out for the first time in an interview with ESPN’s Michael Smith. In the interview, Stallworth is said to address his account of the night in question, as well as his perception of the legal proceedings.

My question to you, what do you need to hear from Stallworth tonight to convince you that he is both remorseful and ready to assume normal standing amongst the rest of society? Below is a preview of Stallworth’s interview on ESPN’s E:60.

From BET.com:

Cleveland Browns wideout Donte Stallworth, now serving 30 days in jail for striking a man with his car and killing him in March, had marijuana in his system at the time of the accident, the athlete’s attorney acknowledged Tuesday.

“Evidence leaked or released over the coming days and weeks will reflect exculpatory statements and acts by Donte’, the presence of marijuana in his blood, and it will highlight the critical issue of causation,” David Cornwell said in a statement, confirming a report in the Miami Herald on Tuesday, based on anonymous sources, that Stallworth tested positive for marijuana.

Click here for full story.

RELATED:

NFL Player Donte Stallworth Charged With Manslaughter

NFL’s Stallworth Pleads Guilty To Manslaughter Gets 30 Days

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is leaning toward indefinitely suspending former New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress and continuing to sideline quarterback Michael Vick, three sources with knowledge of the situations have indicated. Such moves would be the latest examples of Goodell’s tough stance on players embroiled in off-field issues as evidenced with the suspension of Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte’ Stallworth earlier this month.

Stallworth has been ruled out indefinitely by the league after pleading guilty to DUI manslaughter in the death of a Miami man in March. Stallworth was sentenced to 30 days in jail, two years of house arrest and reached a financial settlement with the family of the late Mario Reyes.

Click here to read the entire article

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte’ Stallworth is going to serve 30 days in jail after pleading guilty in Florida to a DUI manslaughter charge.

The plea deal announced Tuesday calls for the 28-year-old Stallworth to also serve 10 years’ probation and do 1,000 community service hours for killing a pedestrian he hit with his car. Stallworth had faced up to 15 years in prison.

Police say Stallworth was drinking at a hotel bar before the March 14 crash that killed 59-year-old construction worker Mario Reyes. Tests showed Stallworth’s blood-alcohol content was .126.

Stallworth also reached a confidential financial settlement with the Reyes’ family. A person close to the negotiations told The Association Press about the agreement on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk about the deal.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

MIAMI (AP) — Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte’ Stallworth has agreed to plead guilty to DUI manslaughter charges Tuesday, and reached a financial settlement with the family of the pedestrian he struck and killed in a March car crash, a person with knowledge of the deal said.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because they were not authorized to talk about the settlement. The person said the terms of the agreement are confidential but will avoid a potential wrongful death lawsuit from the family of 59-year-old Mario Reyes.

Stallworth, 28, is expected to receive a short jail sentence and a lengthy term of probation if his plea deal is accepted by Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Dennis Murphy.

Miami Beach police said Stallworth was drinking at the swank Fontainebleau hotel bar before the March 14 crash. He left to go to a nearby home — he owns three properties in the Miami area — in his black 2005 Bentley on MacArthur Causeway, which links the beach to downtown Miami.

Prosecutors say Stallworth hit Reyes, a construction crane operator who was rushing to catch a bus after finishing his shift around 7:15 a.m. Stallworth told police he flashed his lights in an attempt to warn Reyes, who was not in a crosswalk when he was struck.

A spokeswoman for the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office said Reyes’ family has been pushing hard to resolve the case.

“We have been in intense negotiations for the past couple of days,” spokeswoman Terry Chavez said. “We always take the victim’s wishes into account.”

Stallworth had faced up to 15 years in prison on the DUI manslaughter charge, but the plea deal calls for far less time.

Stallworth had a blood-alcohol level of .126 after the crash, well above Florida’s .08 limit. Stallworth has also has cooperated with investigators and issued a statement shortly after the crash expressing sympathy for Reyes’ family.

Stallworth stopped after the crash and immediately told officers he had hit Reyes. Police estimated Stallworth was driving about 50 mph in a 40 mph zone.

Stallworth signed a seven-year, $35 million contract with the Browns before last season but was injured much of the year. He also has played for New England, Philadelphia and New Orleans.

The National Football League has said it will review the matter for possible disciplinary action after the legal case is completed.

David Cornwell, a Stallworth attorney handling the NFL situation, said he has kept top league officials apprised of the case.

“Whenever it is appropriate to do so, we are prepared to discuss the circumstances under which Donte’ will resume his career,” Cornwell said.

The NFL and the Cleveland Browns are reviewing the charges against wide receiver Donte Stallworth, who is accused of killing a pedestrian while driving his Bentley drunk after a night out at a posh South Beach hotel.

Donte Stallworth Kills Pedestrian With Bentley

Stallworth was expected to surrender in court Thursday morning to face charges of DUI manslaughter in the March 14 accident that killed 59-year-old Mario Reyes. If convicted, Stallworth would face up to 15 years in prison. A warrant for the 28-year-old’s arrest was filed Wednesday and prosecutors said they will ask that he be released on $200,000 bail.

Stallworth’s blood-alcohol level after the crash was .126, well above Florida’s legal limit of .08, according to results of a blood test. Stallworth will also be charged with DUI, which carries a possible six-month sentence plus fines and community service for first offenders.

“Whenever a deadly accident occurs and a driver is impaired, families suffer,” said Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle in a statement.

Stallworth released a statement last month saying he was “grief-stricken” over the accident.

The Browns said in a statement that they were “disappointed” that Stallworth put himself in this position.

“We are saddened by the circumstances that have taken place and our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Mario Reyes,” the statement said. “We have been in communication with the commissioner, who is reviewing the situation under league policies, and we will withhold further comment at this time.”

NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the league would review the case under its conduct and substance abuse policies.

“As the state attorney has said, this was a tragic accident that raises serious issues and we join all those who have expressed their sympathies to the Reyes family,” Aiello said.

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Stallworth will be prohibited from driving while on bail and not allowed to drink alcohol, according to court documents. He also must observe a midnight to 6 a.m. curfew and submit to random alcohol and drug testing through the NFL’s substance abuse program.

A Miami Beach police report said Reyes was not in a crosswalk on busy MacArthur Causeway when he was struck by the black 2005 Bentley luxury car driven by Stallworth. The construction crane operator was trying to catch a bus home after finishing his shift around 7:15 a.m.

The report also quoted Stallworth as saying he flashed his lights at Reyes in an attempted warning and that Stallworth was driving about 50 mph in a 40 mph zone.

An additional police affidavit filed Wednesday said that on the morning of the crash, Stallworth was drinking at a club in the posh Fontainebleau hotel on South Beach. He left to go to a nearby home — it’s not clear if it was one of his three Miami-area properties — and then headed out to the causeway where Reyes was struck.

“I hit the man lying in the road,” Stallworth told officers arriving to investigate the crash, according to the affidavit. One officer smelled alcohol on Stallworth’s breath and said that his eyes appeared bloodshot and watery.

Stallworth’s attorney Christopher Lyons did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

Stallworth signed a seven-year, $35 million contract with the Browns before last season but was injured much of the year. He previously played for New England, Philadelphia and New Orleans.

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth hit and killed a pedestrian with his Bentley on Saturday morning on a busy causeway linking Miami and Miami Beach, police said.

Stallworth was headed toward the beach when he hit Mario Reyes, 59, around 7 a.m., said Miami Beach police spokesman Juan Sanchez. Reyes was taken to a nearby trauma center, where he was pronounced dead about an hour later. He was near a crosswalk but it’s not clear if he was crossing legally.

Stallworth, 28, was cooperating and no charges have been filed, Sanchez said. Officers drew blood to test for drugs or alcohol, which is routine. Sanchez said results from the test could take anywhere from three days to three weeks.

Police would not say where Stallworth was coming from or where he was headed, and Sanchez didn’t have anymore information about Reyes.

Miami-Dade County property records show Stallworth owns two condos in a building on Biscayne Boulevard in Miami not far from the causeway and another condo in a different building in Miami.

A message seeking comment was left on the voicemail of his agent, Drew Rosenhaus.

The Browns said in a statement they were aware of what happened.

“We understand the seriousness of this situation, but will not have any further comment at this time as this is an ongoing investigation,” the team said.

Stallworth signed a seven-year, $35 million contract with the Browns as a free agent before last season but hardly played because he was hurt. He was due a $4.75 million signing bonus Friday.

Stallworth, who previously played for New England, Philadelphia and New Orleans, finished last season with just 17 catches for 170 yards. He was slowed all season by a nagging hamstring injury and made just seven starts for the Browns.

Stallworth had his best season with the Saints in 2005, when he made a career-high 70 receptions for 945 yards and seven touchdowns. He was drafted in the first round (No. 13 overall) by the Saints in 2002. Stallworth played his college ball at Tennessee.