Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

MIAMI (AP) — A pedestrian wasn’t in a crosswalk when Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth hit and killed him with his Bentley, according to a report released Tuesday by police in Miami Beach. According to the report, Stallworth told officers he flashed his lights to try to warn 59-year-old Mario Reyes, a construction crane operator who was rushing to catch a bus after getting off work around 7:15 a.m. March 14. Police said Stallworth was driving about 50 mph in a 40 mph zone. They are investigating whether alcohol played a role in the accident. No charges have been filed against Stallworth pending the outcome of blood tests.
A police diagram shows that Reyes was hit in the far left lane of the six-lane MacArthur Causeway - not in a nearby crosswalk. Stallworth stopped a few feet away.

He flashed his lights. What more do you want?

That's the problem with news stories that "allege" that someone did something or count on third-person accounts of something that happened before all of the evidence is collected. Innocent people are accused of something - allegedly - meanwhile, the actual events are being recounted by witnesses and the police.

The initial reports of Stallworth's event was that his Blood-alcohol level was .12 at 7:00am even though he says he hadn't had a drink since midnight. That didn't add up - BAC-wise - since .02 is lost in your system every 90 minutes. For his Blood-alcohol level to have been at .12 at 7:00am, he would have had to have been almost comatose at midnight. For those of us who have been intoxicated at midnight and awakened at 6:00am to get to work, we knew that wasn't plausible, and if Donte wants me to testify in court, I'd be happy to help.

That's why I wonder - just a bit - whenever someone is accused of some heinous crime - allegedly - by someone else who may or may not have an ax to grind. The newspapers and TV stations suck it up and use the eraser-term "allegedly" as though that exonerates them from any responsibility over the reputation of the accused. Meanwhile, the courts and the actual (God forbid) evidence is presented after the story has been plastered over the newspapers and TV.

We pay more attention to the accusations than the actual proof, which is sad because we are supposed to be a country where guilt must be proved beyond the shadow of a doubt and people are presumed innocent; but our instincts and desire for blame make such constitutional provisions second thoughts.

The next time you read a story or see something on the news about an alleged violation, make sure you have cleared your mind of all the media-influenced pomp and focus on the ... facts.

Allow facts to get in the way of a good story.