Donaghy to name other officials who gambled

[Fear the Putin]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2979605

Donaghy to share info about other refs with feds
Updated: August 17, 2007, 9:35 PM ET

Former NBA official Tim Donaghy will reportedly give federal prosecutors information that will implicate other referees in some forms of gambling activity as part of his cooperation with government officials.

The offenses might not include any criminal activity, but could draw the ire of NBA commissioner David Stern, who has insisted the Donaghy situation was that of a "rogue, isolated criminal."

A report on 1050 ESPN Radio in New York said Donaghy will give prosecutors as many as 20 names of other NBA officials and will detail their involvement in some form of gambling activity. The specifics of the gambling allegations are reportedly believed to include betting in casinos.

"As far as we know, the misconduct was isolated to one individual, and we'll stand by that until proven otherwise," National Basketball Referees Association director Lamell McMorris told ESPN.com's Chris Sheridan. "We'll review whatever information Tim Donaghy alleges, but as far as we're concerned, the only person whose conduct has been proven wrong is Tim Donaghy. We're dealing with truth, not hearsay, and the truth is that the only person who has pleaded guilty to any kind of wrongdoing is Tim Donaghy."

NBA spokesman Brian McIntyre said the league had received no information regarding the possibility of other officials being investigated.

On Friday, Donaghy spoke to the New York Daily News.

"I'm very sorry about what happened," he said outside his home. "I'm not going to say anything beyond that. This is an ongoing case -- I can't say anything else."

The NBA's collective bargaining agreement with the officials bans gambling by referees, although there is one exception -- officials are allowed to go to the racetrack and bet on horses during the offseason.

Donaghy, who pleaded guilty on Thursday and was released on $250,000 bond, faces a maximum of 25 years in prison when he is sentenced Nov. 9 for conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting betting information through interstate commerce. He also must pay a $500,000 fine and at least $30,000 in restitution to the government.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now this will be interesting. Very interesting indeed. Many teams will be acquitted of their excuses that they were cheated out.

 

[venom_7]

this is going to be interesting. This could be the end of NBA official integrity as we know it. Even if there is only one other ref that bet on NBA games, there is going to be a big uproar for every ref to be checked out.

 

[uolj]

That article doesn't say anything about betting on games. It even says the betting might not be criminal.

It sounds like Donaghy is going to describe how other referees gambled in casinos. I guess that's against NBA policy, but there's a big leap from that to betting on and influencing NBA games.

 

[Bricklayer]

Whether this is damaging or not will largely depend on whether those bets placed were on basketball or not.

But its still a clear violation of the rules for referees for just the reason seen in the Donaghy case -- puts you in contact with gambling scum, and can get you beholden to them. And if true, just...duh. Gambling is an illness at its peak, but below that its an activity that most normal people can in fact do without if necessary. And for 20 refs to be running around threatening the loss of their very good jobs just to be idiots and donate part of their paychecks to bookies is just...dumb. dumb dumb dumb. And bespeaking a corrputed and very stupid culture amongst officials. How hard could it possibly be to just not go there in exchange for your 6 figure job? I have had 6 figure jobs, and know many many peopel who have as well. You always get the occasional idiot blowing his money up his nose, in Atlantic city, whatever. But the vast majority are in fact able to control themselves in order to protect their good fortune. If 20 of the 60 (or however many) refs cannot, that is a ridiculous percentage of stupidity.

 

[Jerryaki]

If 20 of the 60 (or however many) refs cannot, that is a ridiculous percentage of stupidity.

awesome. fools deserve what their foolishness brings.

 

[Jer]

But its still a clear violation of the rules for referees for just the reason seen in the Donaghy case -- puts you in contact with gambling scum, and can get you beholden to them. And if true, just...duh. Gambling is an illness at its peak, but below that its an activity that most normal people can in fact do without if necessary. And for 20 refs to be running around threatening the loss of their very good jobs just to be idiots and donate part of their paychecks to bookies is just...dumb. dumb dumb dumb. And bespeaking a corrputed and very stupid culture amongst officials. How hard could it possibly be to just not go there in exchange for your 6 figure job? I have had 6 figure jobs, and know many many peopel who have as well. You always get the occasional idiot blowing his money up his nose, in Atlantic city, whatever. But the vast majority are in fact able to control themselves in order to protect their good fortune. If 20 of the 60 (or however many) refs cannot, that is a ridiculous percentage of stupidity.

The normal 6 figure job doesn't come with the kind of power this does; I think it would be too tempting for a lot of people. If you ever wanted something or got into a financial jam, it'd be too easy for one of them to plunk down 10k on a team on any given night and nudge the game in their favor.

Irregular betting wouldn't really throw anyone off, since your average statistics and behavior as an official wouldn't really be too noticeable. Donaghy was probably the only one insane/unlucky enough to get into a situation where it was a more regular thing

 

[Bricklayer]

The normal 6 figure job doesn't come with the kind of power this does; I think it would be too tempting for a lot of people. If you ever wanted something or got into a financial jam, it'd be too easy for one of them to plunk down 10k on a team on any given night and nudge the game in their favor.

Irregular betting wouldn't really throw anyone off, since your average statistics and behavior as an official wouldn't really be too noticeable. Donaghy was probably the only one insane/unlucky enough to get into a situation where it was a more regular thing

Sure, fine, although I of course might argue that the sorts of favors you can do as a lawyer or politician or judge are at least as..."interesting", as the sort you can do as a ref. But that's not the point -- if 20 of the 60 had used said power to cheat like Donaghy for big payuoffs -- well, that would be obscene, but at least your point would apply. But that's likely not what's accused here. These tools are just out gambling randomly. Not out of a sense of power. Out of a lack of power, as in willpower. And its against their employement contracts, and they are doing it anyway. Their alleged "power" doesn't help them at all in that case. In fact they threaten to lose all of it, along wiht the big $$$ jobs, because they can't resist the urge to wager. that is pathetic.

 

[Entity]

how hard are the feds or prosecutors trying to find a paper trail leading to Stern? It almost feels like this is what its coming to in a year or so.

 

[uolj]

how hard are the feds or prosecutors trying to find a paper trail leading to Stern? It almost feels like this is what its coming to in a year or so.

Don't just read the incorrect thread title, the article is just saying that referees gambled in casinos. There is no new evidence of conspiracy or anything like that.

 

[VF21]

Don't just read the incorrect thread title, the article is just saying that referees gambled in casinos. There is no new evidence of conspiracy or anything like that.

Exactly.

I've corrected the thread title and added the lastest update of the article to the OP.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

^At the same time its got to be more than just playing a few hands of black jack or the feds wouldn't even be interested.

 

[VF21]

I'm not going to jump to any conclusions. I think Tim Donaghy is a pathetic individual who is trying his best to give something/anything to the authorities (besides naming any Tony Soprano types) in an attempt to reduce his sentence.

He pleaded guilty, IMHO, so that he wouldn't be on the stand and forced to name the kinds of names you don't want to speak out loud.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

Dick Bavetta, Ted Bernhardt, Bob Delaney?? 2002 WCF...Game 6...hmmmm.....

 

[VF21]

I guess I'm simply not as cynical as some. I've loved the game of basketball and the NBA for far too long to start looking for boogeymen behind every rock.

If 2002 was fixed, it was fixed. Not a damned thing could be done to rectify it. I'm not going to allow one weasel to ruin my enjoyment of something I've loved for over 40 years. He will not take that away from me.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

I guess I'm simply not as cynical as some. I've loved the game of basketball and the NBA for far too long to start looking for boogeymen behind every rock.

If 2002 was fixed, it was fixed. Not a damned thing could be done to rectify it. I'm not going to allow one weasel to ruin my enjoyment of something I've loved for over 40 years. He will not take that away from me.

Hey, I'm with ya 100% VF, but IF it is proven that one of those three were involved in gambling on the NBA like Donaghy...wouldnt your heart feel that much hurt and anger knowing that we would have won that game if it werent for crooked refs...and we would have had one of those parades we've been dreaming about for the last 23 years down Capitol Mall that summer? It might actually make me shed a tear if it is proven that all or one of those three might be in on this stuff, too. My passion...my love...my heart...my Kings...OUR Kings! The world as we know it in Sacramento would be a MUCH different place in alot of ways had we won it all in 2002. *sigh*

 

[VF21]

The allegations I've seen and heard ONLY imply officials may have done some gambling in casinos. I've seen nothing to indicate that he's going to accuse anyone else of actually doing what he did...

2002 is over and done. I'm not about to spend any more time feeling angst over what might or might not have been.

If you want to talk about game 6, you also have to talk about game 5. Fair is fair.

Bottom line is the Kings still had their fate in their own hands in game 7. They took the Lakers to overtime and choked. Period. End of story. Nothing more to see here. Let's just move on.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

Yup, I have...long ago...but still... If all it was was casino gambling...I wonder to what extent it was? Man, do the NBA refs need to start an in-house "GA" Gambler's Anonymous?

 

[bibbinator]

Donaghy is going to turn as much over as he can, no matter how trivial, to save himself. Poker has been a national craze for a while now. Some of the refs must have played in some private games, everyone knows the players do it on the planes. That sort of gambling doesn't bother me provided it's low stakes social stuff.

Unfortunately I think this goes deeper then that. I've struck up conversations with random strangers at sports bars who've told me they don't watch the NBA anymore because the refs are play favorites. Perhaps Donaghy is the only one who was fixing games for personal profit but I doubt it. I expect at least a couple more.

Stern needs to come clean, admit there are problems, and sweep them up all at once rather than let them dribble out over time. Otherwise pro basketball is going to go the way of pro-wrestling. To see a real match you'll have to watch college ball.

If it does get worse Stern should resign.

 

[Bricklayer]

Yup, I have...long ago...but still... If all it was was casino gambling...I wonder to what extent it was? Man, do the NBA refs need to start an in-house "GA" Gambler's Anonymous?

Donaghy will sell out the other refs....but its not clear it will do him any good if they have not been playing the other side, whihc is unlikely. Might give the feds enough names to entertain themselves chasing theire tails for a few years though.

As for Stern. Uh...no. Not a chance. In hell. Amongst other things if David Stern and the Gambinos ever got tied up, the bigger finned creature would win and they'd be picking bits of the Gambinos out of his teeth.

but the refs are in for hard times -- one does not get between Stern and what is good for his league without getting chewed up, and Stern knows now that he has all of the bargaining power as they head into their next contract to extract draconian terms.

P.S. If you think college ball is somehow immune from this you are crazy -- MOST of the gambling scandals over the years have occurred at the college level. People just forget about it. In fact much richer environment for it because the principals (players, refs) are not nearly as well paid (or paid at all), so thje temptation of big illegal money can be much greater. They are also younger and dumber, and in many cases do not have long term careers to protect. And they work in the shadows. The difference between asking Okalahoma State's #2 scorer to make a mistake or two down the stretch of a game and asking Paul Pierce to make a mistake or two down the stretch o f a game is immense. What could you possibly offer Pierce to make him do that? On the other hand you could over the Oklahoma Satte kid more money that he would make in a year, and have it all chalked up to youthful mistakes.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Stern needs to come clean, admit there are problems, and sweep them up all at once rather than let them dribble out over time. Otherwise pro basketball is going to go the way of pro-wrestling. To see a real match you'll have to watch college ball.

If it does get worse Stern should resign.

Of course there are problems but in reality the NBA has been better than the other pro sports leagues, and college has a long, long history of gambling problems. There's no reason for Stern to resign over any of this. Its not like everything he touches turns to gold but he's proven to be far better than any of the other active commissioners, its a bit early to call Goodell but I don't like him already.

 

[Andre87]

I bet Delaney and Eddie F Rush are among the gamblers...

 

[Gargamel]

^At the same time its got to be more than just playing a few hands of black jack or the feds wouldn't even be interested.

If it's anything less than direct involvement in betting on games, shaving points, then it won't matter. (Tax fraud scheme in late 90s). Most of them kept their jobs after that.

Stern will do everything possible to keep the oldies around. We didn't have a good time as fans dealing w/ replacement refs at the start of the 96 season. Fans still hate today's crews on GPs, but be careful what we wish for because the start of 96 was heinous. Stern is going to put temps (not hire new guys) in the place of any ref that he feels can later be brought back in.

 

[quick dog]

This was completely predictable. It will be very interesting to see how many referees retire prior to the opening game in October.

More stuff:

New York Post

REF BLOWING THE WHISTLE
WILL NAME UP TO 20 'BETTORS'
By GINGER ADAMS OTIS and SAM GOLDSMITH

August 19, 2007 -- Disgraced NBA referee Tim Donaghy will reportedly finger as many as 20 other league officials as part of his cooperation with federal prosecutors probing an illegal gambling ring.

The ex-ref is ready to give prosecutors the names of colleagues who allegedly had some involvement in gambling, according to ESPN Radio.

The allegations about other refs and gambling - believed to include betting in casinos - may not rise to the level of criminal activity, ESPN said.

But with betting a definite no-no for refs under NBA guidelines, the revelations could decimate the league's officiating staff - and further tarnish its sinking reputation.

Twenty referees is about a third of the NBA's 59-referee roster.

NBA rules prohibit gambling among referees, with the excep tion of off-season wagering at racetracks.

Officials are allowed to at tend shows at casinos during the off-season, but can't enter gambling areas.

Referees who violate the policy can be fired.

NBA officials yesterday declined to comment on the report.

"We have no additional information," spokesman Tim Frank said in an e- mail.

Sources close to the ever-widening FBI probe last week indicated the focus so far has been on professional gamblers, not accusations against NBA insiders or referees.

A spokesman for the National Basketball Referees Association, which represents NBA-level officials, strongly denied any wrongdoing among other referees.

"At this time, this is all hearsay," said Lamell McMorris.

"As far as I know, there's only one individual who admitted wrongdoing. This is an unfortunate matter regarding Tim Donaghy - and only him," McMorris insisted.

Meanwhile, Donaghy, who pleaded guilty last week to wagering on National Basketball Association games he officiated, got a visit at his Bradenton, Fla., home yesterday morning from a Manatee County sheriff conducting a "welfare check."

The ref-in-exile - reportedly on antidepressants and struggling with his gambling addiction - has received regular visits from local cops to make sure he is alive and well, a source said.

Donaghy was released on $250,000 bond last week and he faces up to 25 years in jail and hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.

He is due to be sentenced Nov. 9 for conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting betting information through interstate commerce.

He'll also be slapped with a $500,000 fine and will pay at least $30,000 in restitution to the government.

Donaghy has claimed to be the victim of mob-linked pressure - allegedly from Gambino crime-family gangsters.

His illegal-gambling scam spanned the past two seasons.

NBA officials were horrified to learn of the allegations and insisted Donaghy was nothing more than an "isolated criminal."

gotis@nypost.com

 

[VF21]

Newsday

NBA: no comment on Donaghy accusing other refs
BY KEN BERGER | ken.berger@newsday.com
August 19, 2007

The NBA is refusing to comment on a radio report stating that Tim Donaghy has information about the gambling habits of 20 other referees, a development that could widen the scandal and increase the scrutiny of his former colleagues.

John Lauro, Donaghy's defense attorney, also refused to comment on the report Friday on 1050 ESPN Radio in New York, which stated that Donaghy plans to detail about 20 other referees' involvement in some form of gambling as part of his agreement to cooperate with federal prosecutors. The type of gambling was not specified, but is believed to include casino gambling.

It is against NBA rules for all employees, including referees, to gamble at casinos. The collective bargaining agreement between the league and the referees' union stipulates that officials are barred from all forms of betting with the exception of offseason wagering at horse tracks.

"We haven't received any additional information and have no comment," NBA spokesman Tim Frank said yesterday.

In his July 24 news conference addressing the Donaghy matter, NBA commissioner David Stern called the former ref "a rogue, isolated criminal," and the league has remained steadfast that no evidence has come to light implicating any other referee. In the same news conference, Stern stated adamantly that any referee found to have engaged in gambling activity would "most likely" be subject to "expulsion from the league and the job."

The NBA presumably has conducted its own investigation of Donaghy's activities and the possible gambling involvement of anyone else affiliated with the league. Such an investigation, typically conducted by a law firm, often is the first step when corporations are faced with a "whistleblower" former employee who has accepted a plea agreement from authorities and could assist them by implicating others.

The potential for 20 referees, a third of the league's officiating staff, being implicated by Donaghy - even in legal gambling activity - only underscores how delicate the NBA's predicament is as it awaits Donaghy's sentencing Nov. 9.

And the situation could get even more serious for the league if local prosecutors all over the country attempt to bring charges against Donaghy if he is found to have wagered on games in their jurisdictions. Maricopa County (Ariz.) prosecutor Andrew Thomas has sent a letter to Stern and the FBI stating that he would consider bringing state charges against Donaghy if he wagered on two Phoenix Suns playoff games he officiated this past season.

Under federal sentencing guidelines, Donaghy would receive a reduction in the proposed 25-year prison sentence related to his guilty plea based not only for cooperation with authorities, but also with the NBA.

Donaghy, 40, a 13-year veteran, pleaded guilty Wednesday to felony charges related to betting on NBA games and being paid to supply confidential information to gamblers. James Battista, 42, and Thomas Martino, 41, both from Pennsylvania, were arraigned on charges related to conspiring with Donaghy on NBA bets.

 

[venom_7]

this is getting heavy. I'm staying tuned.

 

[Bricklayer]

Again, gambling is NOT cheating. I do not gamble as a rule. Consider it weak and foolih. But many many MANY people do it all the time without being corrupt or cheating. It is against the NBA rules for officials to gamble, and with good reason. Very dangerous and opens doors to Donaghy situations. But as of right now all that is implied is that perhaps 20 of the refs may have violated those anti-gambling rules, NOT that 20 of them have been corrupted and cooperating with mobsters.

 

[uolj]

::shrug::

Not much new here. I agree with Gargamel. I doubt many if any refs will lose their jobs. Most referees caught gambling will likely get fined and/or suspended but not fired.

 

[quick dog]

I'll bet the NBA starts with ten fewer experienced referees this October. Ten spontaneous retirements, perhaps a few indictments.

 

[VF21]

I think you're reading WAY too much into it, QD. Donaghy is desperate to try and reduce his sentence but pleaded guilty so he wouldn't have to name "Tony Soprano" type names. Him simply saying a few official's names isn't going to do much at this point without some pretty strong evidence of some kind.

Ten spontaneous retirements when at the most they're probably looking at some fines for maybe participating in gambling events at casinos? Not gonna happen, IMHO.

Remember, all Donaghy said was reportedly he could name other officials who had GAMBLED. That doesn't mean any of them actually had anything to do with betting on the NBA, let alone gotten in so deep with organized crime they had to go to the lengths Donaghy went to.

The allegations about other refs and gambling - believed to include betting in casinos - may not rise to the level of criminal activity, ESPN said.

 

[quick dog]

This is how the criminal justice system works.

The authorities nab low-level schmucks, put heat on him, and they sing like canaries. The FBI obviously wants the organized crime figures, but careers are made on high-visibility cases. These people have no conscience. Former fame-seeking prosecutors write books, go on Larry King, and generally hob-nob with the Hollywood set. A small-time punk referee with a gambling problem is by definition not a strong man. He is a putz.

I would be surprised if the NBA is squeaky-clean. I would be surprised if the FBI doesn't shake the trees and see what falls out. I am personally hoping for a revisitation to "Game 6", but that would be too much to wish for.