LoungeMachine
12-29-2007, 02:59 PM
By BEN SHPIGEL
Published: December 29, 2007
Jim Leyritz, a World Series hero for the Yankees in 1996, faces manslaughter and drunken-driving charges in connection with a car accident early Friday morning in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., that killed a 30-year-old woman.
Broward County Sheriff’s Office
Jim Leyritz failed a field sobriety test and refused to take a Breathalyzer.
Jim Leyritz’s three-run homer in Game 4 of the 1996 World Series helped the Yankees to the first of four titles in five years.
Leyritz, who turned 44 on Thursday, had been out celebrating with friends when, according to a police report, witnesses said he did not stop at a red light and drove his 2006 Ford Expedition through an intersection in Fort Lauderdale’s entertainment district at approximately 3:20 a.m. Friday. His S.U.V. slammed into a 2000 Mitsubishi Montero, driven by Fredia Ann Veitch of Plantation, Fla. The Montero flipped and Veitch was ejected from the car. She was taken to Broward General Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.
The police report said that officers observed Leyritz to have “red, watery eyes, flushed face and the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person.” The police said he failed roadside field-sobriety exercises like walking and touching his finger to his nose, and he also refused to take a Breathalyzer test.
After being told that Veitch had died, Leyritz, who lives in Davie, Fla., refused to have his blood taken, the police said. Leyritz, who was charged with driving under the influence, manslaughter and D.U.I. property damage, remained uncooperative, according to the police, and did not have his blood taken until 6:10 a.m., and then again at 7:12 a.m., at Broward General Medical Center.
Katherine Collins, a detective with the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, said in a news release that the police were waiting for the medical examiner’s office to finish analyzing the blood tests before saying whether alcohol played a role in the crash. Leyritz, who is twice-divorced and has three sons, posted an $11,000 bond and was released from the Broward County jail on Friday afternoon.
Andrew Levy, a friend and a sports marketing agent who represents Leyritz, said he spoke to him a few times Friday, calling his mood “down” and “distraught.”
“At one point, his kids were there, and he was telling them over and over again how much he loved them,” Levy said in a telephone interview. “He was very distraught as to what happened and what his future holds. Hopefully, he can get back on his feet because this is a very difficult time.”
Leyritz played for six teams, including two stints with the Yankees, during his 11-year major league career and was best known for his postseason heroics. In 1995, Leyritz hit a two-run game-winning home run in the 15th inning of Game 2 of the Yankees’ division series against Seattle. The Mariners won that series in five games.
But that was a precursor to his defining moment, when, with the Yankees trailing the Atlanta Braves by two games to one in the 1996 World Series, he hit a tying three-run homer off closer Mark Wohlers that changed the tenor of the series. The Yankees went on to win that game, as well as the next two, to capture their first of four World Series titles in five seasons.
Leyritz stopped playing in 2000 but re-entered the spotlight in 2006 when he admitted in separate radio interviews that he took amphetamines and human growth hormone. Leyritz described during an interview on the “Opie & Anthony” show on XM Radio the events that led to the first time he took an amphetamine, saying that he had been out late the night before, drinking with some teammates.
Leyritz said he was hung over and sleeping by his locker when Don Mattingly told him that he was starting in Mattingly’s place. That prompted Leyritz to look for a teammate who he knew had amphetamines.
In an interview with The New York Post last year, Leyritz admitted using H.G.H. while recovering from surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff between the 2000 and 2001 seasons.
In his final season in the majors, Leyritz batted .209 in 115 at-bats with the Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers.
He played for six teams over 11 seasons, including the Angels, the Rangers, the Red Sox and the Padres. He was a career .264 hitter, with 90 home runs and 387 runs batted in in 903 games.
Leyritz had said his goal was to get back into baseball as a coach, and last season he served as a baseball reporter for ESPN 1050 in New York and as a part-time on-air correspondent for MLB.com. ESPN 1050 did not renew Leyritz’s contract for next season, but that decision came before the accident.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/29/sports/29leyritz.html?em&ex=1199077200&en=ff60d38fbd4a1e31&ei=5087%0A
Published: December 29, 2007
Jim Leyritz, a World Series hero for the Yankees in 1996, faces manslaughter and drunken-driving charges in connection with a car accident early Friday morning in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., that killed a 30-year-old woman.
Broward County Sheriff’s Office
Jim Leyritz failed a field sobriety test and refused to take a Breathalyzer.
Jim Leyritz’s three-run homer in Game 4 of the 1996 World Series helped the Yankees to the first of four titles in five years.
Leyritz, who turned 44 on Thursday, had been out celebrating with friends when, according to a police report, witnesses said he did not stop at a red light and drove his 2006 Ford Expedition through an intersection in Fort Lauderdale’s entertainment district at approximately 3:20 a.m. Friday. His S.U.V. slammed into a 2000 Mitsubishi Montero, driven by Fredia Ann Veitch of Plantation, Fla. The Montero flipped and Veitch was ejected from the car. She was taken to Broward General Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.
The police report said that officers observed Leyritz to have “red, watery eyes, flushed face and the odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his person.” The police said he failed roadside field-sobriety exercises like walking and touching his finger to his nose, and he also refused to take a Breathalyzer test.
After being told that Veitch had died, Leyritz, who lives in Davie, Fla., refused to have his blood taken, the police said. Leyritz, who was charged with driving under the influence, manslaughter and D.U.I. property damage, remained uncooperative, according to the police, and did not have his blood taken until 6:10 a.m., and then again at 7:12 a.m., at Broward General Medical Center.
Katherine Collins, a detective with the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, said in a news release that the police were waiting for the medical examiner’s office to finish analyzing the blood tests before saying whether alcohol played a role in the crash. Leyritz, who is twice-divorced and has three sons, posted an $11,000 bond and was released from the Broward County jail on Friday afternoon.
Andrew Levy, a friend and a sports marketing agent who represents Leyritz, said he spoke to him a few times Friday, calling his mood “down” and “distraught.”
“At one point, his kids were there, and he was telling them over and over again how much he loved them,” Levy said in a telephone interview. “He was very distraught as to what happened and what his future holds. Hopefully, he can get back on his feet because this is a very difficult time.”
Leyritz played for six teams, including two stints with the Yankees, during his 11-year major league career and was best known for his postseason heroics. In 1995, Leyritz hit a two-run game-winning home run in the 15th inning of Game 2 of the Yankees’ division series against Seattle. The Mariners won that series in five games.
But that was a precursor to his defining moment, when, with the Yankees trailing the Atlanta Braves by two games to one in the 1996 World Series, he hit a tying three-run homer off closer Mark Wohlers that changed the tenor of the series. The Yankees went on to win that game, as well as the next two, to capture their first of four World Series titles in five seasons.
Leyritz stopped playing in 2000 but re-entered the spotlight in 2006 when he admitted in separate radio interviews that he took amphetamines and human growth hormone. Leyritz described during an interview on the “Opie & Anthony” show on XM Radio the events that led to the first time he took an amphetamine, saying that he had been out late the night before, drinking with some teammates.
Leyritz said he was hung over and sleeping by his locker when Don Mattingly told him that he was starting in Mattingly’s place. That prompted Leyritz to look for a teammate who he knew had amphetamines.
In an interview with The New York Post last year, Leyritz admitted using H.G.H. while recovering from surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff between the 2000 and 2001 seasons.
In his final season in the majors, Leyritz batted .209 in 115 at-bats with the Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers.
He played for six teams over 11 seasons, including the Angels, the Rangers, the Red Sox and the Padres. He was a career .264 hitter, with 90 home runs and 387 runs batted in in 903 games.
Leyritz had said his goal was to get back into baseball as a coach, and last season he served as a baseball reporter for ESPN 1050 in New York and as a part-time on-air correspondent for MLB.com. ESPN 1050 did not renew Leyritz’s contract for next season, but that decision came before the accident.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/29/sports/29leyritz.html?em&ex=1199077200&en=ff60d38fbd4a1e31&ei=5087%0A