Drug and alcohol problems are widespread among professional football players who face huge pressures on an almost daily basis. An example is former Dallas Cowboy Josh Brent who last week asked a Dallas County judge to let him serve the rest of a jail sentence in a treatment facility. The former defensive tackle was convicted earlier this year of intoxication manslaughter for a crash that killed his teammate and friend Jerry Brown Jr. Brent, 25, was accused of driving drunk and crashing his car in Irving on Dec. 8 2012, resulting in the death of Brown, Brent’s best friend. The NFL player had a reported blood alcohol content of 0.18, more than twice the legal driving limit. He was charged with intoxication manslaughter charge and manslaughter in connection with Brown’s death. Brent was sentenced to 180 days in jail and 10 years of probation for the crash when he was convicted of intoxication manslaughter on a suburban Dallas highway that killed Brown, who was a passenger in Brent’s car. He could have been sentenced to up to 20 years in prison. He was also fined $10,000. The former defensive lineman retired from the Cowboys last year. State District Judge Robert Burns must approve the request for rehab, KXAS-TV (NBC5) reported. Dallas County First Assistant District Attorney Heath Harris told the TV station, the treatment center would be an in-patient confinement facility. “Rehab would help him get more help with those issues,” Harris said. “We’re not going to stand in the way of that.” Brent has approximately six weeks left on his jail sentence. He was still in the Dallas County Jail late Friday.
The crime of intoxicated manslaughter is essentially drunk driving resulting in death. The crime is a second degree felony carrying a potential prison term of 2-20 years. Although the defendant is eligible for probation, he or she must serve a minimum of 120 days in jail as a condition of that probation.
