Full Story
...shot in his Miami suburb home of Palmetto Bay. This comes as no surprise, but why this scumbag would make front webpage news remains a mystery.
Career Highlights
Incarcerated at the University of Miami from 2001-2003.
"Taylor has been in trouble numerous times since he was drafted as the No. 5 overall pick in 2004. He has been fined at least seven times during his professional career for late hits and other infractions, including a $17,000 penalty for spitting in the face of Tampa Bay running back Michael Pittman during a playoff game in January 2006. He also was fined $25,000 for skipping a mandatory rookie symposium shortly after he was drafted."
Legal Highlights (courtesy of Wikipedia.org)
DUI arrest
On October 27, 2004, Taylor was arrested at 2:45am for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol following a birthday party for former Redskins' receiver Rod Gardner. A Fairfax County, Virginia judge later acquitted Taylor of the charges in March 2005, after viewing a videotape of Taylor's roadside sobriety tests that, according to the judge, failed to demonstrate obvious intoxication. Taylor was, however, convicted for refusing to take a blood alcohol test requested of him by a Virginia state police officer. However, when this case was heard on appeal in March 2005, Taylor was acquitted of refusing to take a BAC test, due to lack of probable cause for the request.[citation needed]
[edit] Missing 2005 Redskins mini-camp
In May, 2005, Taylor, seeking a new contract with the Redskins, was the only Redskin who refused to appear for a Redskins' training mini-camp. Redskins coach Joe Gibbs acknowledged that the Redskins had had no contact with Taylor since he returned to Miami in January, 2005, and that he had failed to return repeated phone calls to him by Gibbs and other Redskins' coaching staff. Despite his legal and other difficulties, though, Gibbs has defended the drafting of Taylor, calling the preparation that went into his selection one of the "most researched things in the history of sports."[citation needed]
Taylor's agent is fellow University of Miami alumnus Drew Rosenhaus, widely considered one of the most aggressive agents currently representing NFL players.[citation needed] Rosenhaus currently is representing Taylor in his efforts to renegotiate his existing Redskins' contract.[citation needed]
[edit] Arrested for armed assault
Events:
* On June 3, 2005, Taylor was named publicly as a "person of interest" by Miami-Dade County police in regard to a Miami assault case involving firearms, and was being sought for questioning. "We need to speak to him, we don't know if he's a victim, witness or suspect," Miami-Dade police spokesman Mary Walters said. Taylor allegedly was present at, and possibly involved in, an incident on June 1, 2005 in Miami, in which bullets allegedly were fired into a stolen vehicle. [citation needed]
* On June 5, 2005, ESPN and The Miami Herald both reported that Taylor, accompanied by his lawyer, surrendered to Miami-Dade police at approximately 10pm ET on June 4 at Miami's Cutler Ridge district police station, where he was transported to Miami's Turner Guilford Knight correctional facility. He was charged with aggravated assault with a firearm, a felony, and misdemeanor battery.[citation needed]
* On June 5, Miami-Dade police issued a statement indicating that Taylor had been arrested for aggravated assault with a firearm (a felony) and battery (a misdemeanor), for allegedly pointing a gun at a person over a dispute over two ATVs that Taylor claimed were stolen.[citation needed] Taylor then allegedly left the scene, but returned shortly and punched one person.[citation needed]
* The Associated Press reported on June 5 that Taylor was held in detention at Miami's Turner Gilford Knight correctional facility and released the evening of June 4 after posting bond of $16,500. The Miami-Dade County Clerk's Office announced that Taylor would soon be officially arraigned on the charges.[citation needed]
* The Washington Post reported on March 3, 2006 that Taylor's trial has been postponed until April 10, 2006. Days before that date, the trial was moved back once more, this time by a week, because of conflicts with Passover and Easter celebrations.[citation needed]
* CNN reported on November 26, 2007 that Taylor was shot in the leg at his home in Miami, Florida.
[edit] Plea agreement and resolution
On January 28, 2006, the Miami-Dade County prosecutor announced that he was filing new charges against Taylor, which would have increased his potential maximum jail time from 16 years to 46 years.[citation needed]
The new charges include increasing his felony assault charges from one to three, which reflects the allegation that, on June 1, 2005, he brandished a firearm at three individuals who Taylor believed stole two all-terrain vehicles from him.[citation needed]
The trial was again postponed on April 17, 2006 (to May 8, 2006), after the prosecutor in the case asked the presiding judge to be removed from the case. The County prosecutor's request for removal from the case came as Taylor's defense lawyers argued that the prosecutor was using the case to promote his side-work as a disc jockey in South Beach. Defense lawyers for Taylor have entered a motion for the case's complete dismissal, due to prosecutorial misconduct.[citation needed]
On May 8, 2006, the prosecution requested and received yet another extension of the case, citing the new prosecutor assigned to the case and a need for additional preparation time. It was scheduled to begin July 10, 2006 in Miami. On June 2, 2006, however, the charges against Taylor were dropped as part of a negotiated plea bargain. Taylor will donate his time to various charities and make $1,000 donations to 10 southern Florida schools in scholarships and, in exchange, will avoid jail time and a felony record.
