SOMERVILLE, N.J. — The outcome of a 7-year-old manslaughter case against Jayson Williams now rests in the hands of a judge who will decide whether alleged racial bias and prosecutorial misconduct played a part in the retired NBA star’s 2004 trial.
At the end of a hearing Thursday, state Superior Court Judge Edward M. Coleman told lawyers he would rule on the case, but he did not specify when.
In closing arguments, Williams’ attorney blasted the prosecution as “out of control” and governed by a “win-at-all-costs” mentality that crossed ethical boundaries. The state said the defense did not present any evidence that a racial slur made by a prosecutor’s investigator influenced the trial or was part of an overall pattern of racial bias.
Williams was acquitted of aggravated manslaughter in the 2002 shotgun slaying of hired driver Costas “Gus” Christofi at Williams’ central New Jersey estate. But the jury convicted him of attempting to cover up the shooting.
He was to be retried on a reckless manslaughter count when Hunterdon County prosecutor J. Patrick Barnes disclosed in 2007 that a former captain in his office made a racial slur while the office was investigating the death. After a legal battle, the defense won a state Supreme Court ruling ordering the prosecution to release more details about the investigation.
Meanwhile, Williams’ retrial was scheduled for January. He has remained free on bail since the shooting.
Players suspended for skirmish
NEW YORK — Heat center Jamaal Magloire and Detroit’s Jonas Jerebko have been suspended by the NBA for their altercation in a preseason game.
Magloire was penalized two games for starting the altercation and striking Jerebko in the face with 5:04 left in the fourth quarter of Detroit’s 87-83 victory Monday. Jerebko was suspended one game for retaliating and hitting Magloire in the face.
The NBA said both players would serve their suspensions beginning with the first regular-season games they are physically able to play.
