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Tuesday, February 1, 2000
NFL, state
continue huddle
Officials are working on a deal
that would keep the the
game here until 2005Pro Bowl player accused of murder
By Paul Arnett
Star-BulletinNegotiations continue between the National Football League and State officials to keep the Pro Bowl in Hawaii through 2005.
Last Friday, City Councilman Mufi Hannemann and Mark Rolfing, who is chairman of the events committee for the Hawaii Tourism Authority, confirmed that negotiations were ongoing to keep the NFL all-star game past the current option years of 2002 and 2003.
Since 1991, Orlando, Fla., and Disney have been Hawaii's biggest competitor. And in the current deal that runs three more years, the NFL can opt to send the game to that Florida city.
"That's why we're trying to get something worked out soon where we get to keep the game for the next six years," Hannemann told the Star-Bulletin. "We think this is the perfect place for this game and I believe the NFL does, too. It's just a matter of working out a few details before we can announce something."
Under the current agreement, the state is paying $3.5 million for this year's game and $4 million for 2001. If a new deal can be reached, Rolfing said that the state would pay about $4.5 million for each game through 2005.
"What we want is some kind of return on our investment," Rolfing said on Friday. "We're looking to get maybe 5,000 Pro Bowl tickets to help attract conventions this time of year.
"We also (had) a 30-second spot during the previews on Super Bowl Sunday advertising Hawaii and you know how much commercials like that cost. This is a give-and-take kind of thing."
Rolfing helped negotiate the return of the Quarterback Challenge that will be held on Kauai next week. It is part of eight events generated by the Pro Bowl that will be televised nationally.
"It's difficult to say what the rate of return is for the state having the game," Rolfing said. "But this is the premier sporting event in Hawaii that gives us the most exposure nationally. We want to keep it here if at all possible."
NFL spokesman Bill McConnell wasn't willing to say a deal was imminent. He believes Hawaii has done an excellent job promoting the game. Only once over the past 20 years was it not a sellout and that was following the strike-shortened season of 1982.
As for this week's game, NFL officials confirmed yesterday that the 12 Pro Bowl players who took part in Sunday's Super Bowl are arriving today and tomorrow. The Rams have eight players in this Sunday's game, including NFL and Super Bowl MVP quarterback Kurt Warner.
Pro Bowl Schedule
Pro Bowl linebacker
Associated Press
charged with murderATLANTA -- Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens was supposed to be in Hawaii this week, preparing for his third straight Pro Bowl.
Instead, the star linebacker has become the second NFL player to be charged with murder in less than a month. Lewis is accused of stabbing two people to death shortly after Sunday night's Super Bowl.
Lewis, the league's leading tackler this season, was charged after police spent most of the day investigating the slayings, which happened in Atlanta's trendy Buckhead neighborhood about 4 a.m. yesterday.
Wearing a red prison uniform and with his hands shackled in front of him, Lewis was in court today for a preliminary hearing on the charges. The hearing was postponed until Feb. 24 at the request of prosecutor Larry Gardner, who said he needed more time to confer with witnesses and police. Lewis was held without bail.
His lawyer, Max Richardson Jr., said Lewis is innocent.
"We're taking the position that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time," Richardson said outside the courtroom. "From what I've gathered from law enforcement officers, they know Ray didn't kill these unfortunate victims. ... They don't know where the other two men who were involved are, so they arrested Ray."
He did not identify the other men.
Before his arrest, Lewis told a Baltimore newspaper he was questioned by police but cleared of any wrongdoing.
"I cooperated fully," Lewis told The Sun. "As for the situation, I have no comment."
Two men were stabbed during a fight that broke out about 200 yards away after a party at the Cobalt lounge. Witnesses said six men fought and argued with the two victims before fleeing in a black stretch limousine, firing at least five gunshots as they drove away.
The 24-year-old player was the only suspect identified by police.
Investigators found the vehicle in a parking lot behind a hotel near the shooting scene, police spokesman John Quigley said. He declined to release others details of the investigation or a possible motive.
Charles Cook, operating partner of the Cobalt, said there was no altercation at the club, which closed about half an hour before the slayings. He said Lewis had been at the club earlier in the week but did not know if he was there Sunday night.
The Cobalt is a sleek, upscale lounge featuring vinyl-covered chairs and chrome-plated fixtures. It is in the heart of Atlanta's nightclub district, where thousands of revelers spill into the streets every weekend.
The club was closed yesterday after a "Super Bowl Champagne Blowout" the previous evening. The NFL title game between the St. Louis Rams and Tennessee Titans was at the Georgia Dome, about seven miles away.
The Cobalt has come under fire from neighborhood businesses because of an earlier killing. On Jan. 17, a man was shot to death near the club.
The stabbing victims were identified as Jacinta Baker, 21, and Richard Lollar, 24, both of suburban Decatur. One man died at the scene, the other at Grady Memorial Hospital.
Despite the report of shots, police said the preliminary investigation indicated both victims were stabbed to death.
Lewis left the University of Miami after his junior season and was selected by Baltimore in the first round of the 1996 draft. He has become one of the NFL's top middle linebackers, accounting for 673 tackles in 60 games. He led the league with 167 tackles this season.
Ravens owner Art Modell told The Sun, "I don't believe he had anything to do with it. I'm going to give Ray the benefit of the doubt and defend him until something is proven otherwise."
Lewis, in Atlanta for an autograph-signing session and to attend the Super Bowl, was to leave yesterday for Honolulu, where the Pro Bowl will be played Sunday. He changed his flight when he learned he was wanted for questioning, Byrne said.
