Jury ready to slam Zeke, Dolan and Knicks

[shawn306]

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketball/knicks/2007/10/02/2007-10-02_knicks_jury_hints_toward_ruling_for_anuc.html

Knicks jury hints toward ruling for Anucha Browne Sanders

BY THOMAS ZAMBITO, TAMER EL-GHOBASHY and DAVE GOLDINER

DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

Tuesday, October 2nd 2007, 4:00 AM

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

It looks like Anucha Browne Sanders (below) may have 10 million reasons to smile if the jury rules in her favor over Isiah Thomas.

Isiah Thomas better wipe that trademark grin off his face.

The jury in his $10 million sexual harassment trial was poised yesterday to slam-dunk the Knicks boss and Madison Square Garden for tormenting fired exec Anucha Browne Sanders.

Although the panel went home without delivering a verdict, it indicated it had decided in favor of Browne Sanders and was split only on how harshly to punish Thomas.

The usually cheerful Thomas sat glumly with MSG lawyers as the jury read a note saying it had reached a decision on eight of nine questions - including several that required the jurors to have decided that Thomas and MSG harassed Browne Sanders and fired her when she complained.

The panel said it was only deadlocked 6-1 on whether to impose punitive damages on Thomas, 46, who was accused of calling Browne Sanders "bitch" and "ho" and trying to come on to her.

The note didn't say which way it was split on that question.

"We cannot seem to move forward," the note read. "Please advise."

"Sleep on it," replied Manhattan Federal Court Judge Gerard Lynch. "Come back tomorrow."

Even if the jury remains deadlocked on the question of punitive damages, the judge could allow a verdict on the other counts and declare a mistrial on that issue, lawyers said.

That would still be a crushing blow to the once-storied franchise and the image-conscious Hall of Famer, who insisted Browne Sanders, 44, concocted the whole thing.

The jury tipped its hand that it was prepared to whack Thomas and the Garden by mentioning it had decided the first three questions and was considering Question 4, which deals with punitive damages against Thomas.

If the panel of four women and three men had bought Thomas' story that Browne Sanders was lying, they would have never reached Question 4.

Likewise, if jurors had decided the Garden didn't fire Browne Sanders in retaliation for her filing a harassment complaint, they wouldn't have been required to answer questions 6 through 9, as they said they had.

Lawyers for both sides refused to comment after the stunning note, although Browne Sanders' lawyer, Anne Vladeck, was beaming as she left.

One legal expert said it's all bad news for Thomas and MSG.

"It seems like they have come back on both claims [sex harassment and retaliation] in the plaintiff's favor," said lawyer Douglas Wigdor, who helped Kimberly Osorio, the former editor of The Source, win a nearly $8 million jury award against the bible of the hip-hop industry.

"The one thing they're hung up on is whether to award punitive damages against Isiah Thomas and for that you've got to show intentional disregard of the discrimination laws."

If the jury finds the Garden and Thomas are liable, Lynch will decide how much Browne Sanders is owed in front and back pay.

Jurors will decide how much to give Browne Sanders if they find that she deserves punitive damages. That money will likely come out of the Garden's pocket. Wigdor said insurers do not indemnify corporations for punitive damage awards.

"They could be talking settlement right now," Wigdor said. "This would be the time to do it."

It was a remarkable turn of events at the blockbuster federal trial.

Browne Sanders told the jury Thomas made her life miserable by spewing insults at her and forced her to work in an "Animal House"-like environment.

When she complained, the Garden fired her instead of investigating, she charged.

Thomas forcefully denied the charges and Garden boss James Dolan claimed he fired Browne Sanders because she was a failure and "interfered" in an internal probe.

Thomas, who skipped the team's preseason media day to await a verdict, spent lunch hour battling a friend at a coin-flipping contest on an outdoor terrace.

He exulted when he went up 3-0 in the game requiring players to call heads or tails.

"I'm killing this guy," bellowed Thomas, a 12-time All-Star. "I'm beating him up."

Browne Sanders ate lunch at a Thai restaurant on Baxter St., where she sat across the dining room from Judge Lynch.

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

My hatred for Thomas, Dolan and Marbury is so great right now it has become very hard to even root for this team anymore. When I see what has happened to this franchise since that jack@ss Dolan came on board just makes me sick.

I really hope that MSG gets slammed on this.

These past 6 years have been probably the darkest days this franchise has ever seen. The worst part is there is no light at the end of the tunnel either.

There is no future for this team as long as Dolan, Thomas and Marbury are the faces of this franchise.

[faba]

The Dolans and Thomas will end up paying damages- another blemish on the Garden and the operations.

[JetCane]

I havent really followed the trial, and i despise both isaiah and dolan.

But I'll tell you one thing about manhattan juries as a general rule of thumb.

Once they decide there is liability in a case, they will award big bucks.

[faba]

I havent really followed the trial, and i despise both isaiah and dolan.

But I'll tell you one thing about manhattan juries as a general rule of thumb.

Once they decide there is liability in a case, they will award big bucks.

I think I read that the judge would decide the damage payment-I may be wrong Jetcane.

[DireJet38]

Jury awards $11.6 million to former Knicks exec in sexual harassment case

By TOM HAYS, Associated Press Writer

October 2, 2007

NEW YORK (AP) -- A federal jury decided Madison Square Garden and its chairman must pay $11.6 million in damages to former New York Knicks executive Anucha Browne Sanders in her sexual harassment lawsuit.

A verdict earlier Tuesday found that Knicks coach Isiah Thomas subjected Browne Sanders to unwanted advances and a barrage of verbal insults, but that he did not have to pay punitive damages.

The jury did find, however, that Madison Square Garden committed harassment against the woman and decided she was entitled to punitive damages.

The Garden said it would appeal.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-knicks-thomasharassmentsuit&prov=ap&type=lgns

[JetCane]

I think I read that the judge would decide the damage payment-I may be wrong Jetcane.

I thought i just heard that the jury awarded 11.1 million dollars, and that the judge would make a punitive damage award later today.

[faba]

I thought i just heard that the jury awarded 11.1 million dollars, and that the judge would make a punitive damage award later today.

I am wrong again! 11 million are they crazy!

[shawn306]

How many blackeyes is it going to take before Knicks fans say enough ?

Let me be the first

The slam-dunk ruling in Manhattan Federal Court was stunning setback for Thomas and Dolan, whose lawyers were so confident of winning they wrapped up their defense early - and didn’t bother putting their last six witnesses on the stand.

This came from today's Daily News.

Is there a bigger buffoon in sports right now than Jim Dolan ?

A man who has taken probably a billion dollar enterprise in the MSG and has basically run it into the ground. A buisness that at one time not only had the Knicks and the Rangers but at one point the TV rights to the Mets and Yankees as well.

Now look. The Mets and Yankees are gone. The Knicks are an embarassment. The only good thing going on there right now are the Rangers and I can only hope that Dolan stays as far away from them as possible.

The blood and guts of Reed, Debussure, Bradley, Clyde, King, Ewing, Starks, and Oakley have now been replaced by the imcompetence and arrogance of Dolan, Thomas and Marbury.

I hope somehow someway David Stern shows some guts and bans Dolan from having anything to do with the Knicks.

Dolan and Thomas have wrecked a once proud franchise. Toss him the funk out and start from scratch.

Enough. No More

[shawn306]

I am wrong again! 11 million are they crazy!

They should have given her 100 million.

F-Dolan

[JetCane]

I am wrong again! 11 million are they crazy!

What did I tell you about Manhattan juries?

[JetCane]

How many blackeyes is it going to take before Knicks fans say enough ?

Let me be the first

The slam-dunk ruling in Manhattan Federal Court was stunning setback for Thomas and Dolan, whose lawyers were so confident of winning they wrapped up their defense early - and didn

[#27TheDominator]

I havent really followed the trial, and i despise both isaiah and dolan.

But I'll tell you one thing about manhattan juries as a general rule of thumb.

Once they decide there is liability in a case, they will award big bucks.

Yep. I love 'em, but they are nothing compared to the Bronx. They could break into my car every time I parked in that lot, it was worth it.

[TaborJet]

They should have given her 100 million.

F-Dolan

I agree. Dolan looked so smug in the video interview that was used in the testimony. "All the decisions of the Knick and the Garden go through me" or something like that. Well, the jury just went through you and took a ****load of money.

[mangenious420]

How about Thomas talking to the media like he just won the case or something. I'm innocent i'm innocent.. Well that's not what the 7 member jury found!

[Bugg]

How many blackeyes is it going to take before Knicks fans say enough ?

Let me be the first

The slam-dunk ruling in Manhattan Federal Court was stunning setback for Thomas and Dolan, whose lawyers were so confident of winning they wrapped up their defense early - and didn

[Jet Moses]

15 years ago, I could tell you who the starting five was on every NBA team. Today, I could barely name one or two players, and for some teams, not even one. Some NBA teams I don

[NJ]

The Dolans and Thomas will end up paying damages- another blemish on the Garden and the operations.

You and the Knick fan base deserve better Frank. For that matter - so does professional basketball. Thomas has been a sneaky little pos ever since he undercut his first opponent in the paint playing for St. Joes back here in Chi-town. This guy Dolan must be his scum equal for keeping him around. I hope this latest embarrassment can load the catapult to launch them both out of professional sports.

[Bugg]

15 years ago, I could tell you who the starting five was on every NBA team. Today, I could barely name one or two players, and for some teams, not even one. Some NBA teams I don

[Jet Moses]

And the NBA is fixed anyway. Great post.

The NBA is a joke and the NFL isn't too far behind. You know, I was thinking... Tag's was so big on that NFL minority coach hiring thing, well I propose a NFL commissioner minority program.

I think Roger Goodell should step down immediately and his job should be given to Flavor Flav. Heck, why not? Flavor Flav couldn't possibly do any worse than Herman Edwards or Isiah Thomas.

________________________________

After years of criticism for being a blatantly male-dominated industry, the National Football League has announced an aggressive diversity campaign aimed at ending sexism in professional football. By next season, according to the plan, 20% of all players must be female, with the percentage increasing 10% per year until it reaches the target of 50% in the 2011 season.

"This is a watershed in American history," said Holly Thorncleat, director of the Society for the Advancement of Secondary Sexual Characteristics.

"Professional sports are one of the last bastions of pure chauvinism where the dominant oppressive male ego continues to wreak its damage upon the national consciousness, which results in imperialist wars of conquest, like the one in Iraq."

Judy Hindstress of Harvard University's Gender Modification Department notes that women confront the glass ceiling every day in pro football. "They could be, at best, one of those stupid announcers down on the field, or a petty little cheerleader - one of the most demeaning jobs for women and transgendered individuals."

Players aside, officiating staff must now include at least two women, one of whom will be a certified life coach or licensed therapist. Of the remaining referees one must be hearing-impaired, thus particularly sensitive to the non-verbal cues of females.

NBC, CBS, and ABC all announced, within minutes of the League's statement, that every team of commentators in the coming season will be expanded to include a white heterosexual female, a lesbian, a transgendered person or hermaphrodite, and a female African-American, Native American, Hispanic, East Asian, and Micronesian - in addition to the two or three existing male broadcasters.

ESPN has pledged to go one step further, making each crew "include a wheelchair-bound Palestinian transvestite who is a victim of Israeli war crimes."

Game rules are to be changed accordingly. Female and transgendered players will have the right to call a one minute time-out for "emotional healing and spiritual realignment." Illegal procedure by a male lineperson, if it results in unwanted contact with a female defensive lineperson, will trigger an additional 15-yard penalty for sexual harassment. Displays of insensitivity toward a female player who fumbles or drops a pass will result in a 5-yard penalty.

Not everyone is pleased with these signs of progress. "There's no way some bitch on the rag can catch one of my bullet passes," said Huckleberry Armstrong, a quarterback just entering the NFL from the Canadian league, who was promptly slapped with a $50,000 fine and now faces a possible two-year prison sentence for hate speech.

Fearing that not enough qualified female players can be found on such short notice, a number of celebrities are stepping in to fill the breach. The Chicago Bears have disclosed the signing of free agent Rosie O'Donnell, who is expected to start at offensive tackle. The San Francisco 49ers have recruited Ariana Huffington as wide receiver, hoping to capitalize on her ability to fake out na

[PeterNorth09]

15 years ago, I could tell you who the starting five was on every NBA team. Today, I could barely name one or two players, and for some teams, not even one. Some NBA teams I don’t even know what city they play in. So what happened? How did I lose complete interest in the NBA? It didn’t happen overnight. It was a gradual thing. The NBA jumped the shark after the reign of its last dynasty, the Chicago Bulls. It wasn’t enough that the Bulls were so dominant, the NBA would actually change rules, particularly to compromise defensive strategies designed to slow the Bulls offense down. This was great if you were a Bulls fan, but if you were a fan of any other team, it felt like you were being asked to fight with one hand tied behind your back. It was frustrating and demoralizing. The powers that be decided to ride the gravy train that was Michael Jordan, sacrificing the long run for short-term success, integrity be damned. Then there was the constant barrage of headlines such as the charming Allen Iverson locking his naked wife out of the house in a domestic dispute, or Latrell Sprewell strangling his head coach. Then came the infusion of the teenagers, bypassing NCAA eligibility, and the level of play became degraded. The straw breaking the camels back I guess was when Sprewell made his comment about not “being able to support his family” during a contract dispute. I had seen enough. Of course, the NBA today is a laughing stock. It’s pathetic death Knell was losing to Puerto Rico in the 2004 Olympics, in Greece. It’s been reeling ever since, and hasn’t been helped any by recent allegations of sexual harassment leveled against Knicks GM Isiah Thomas, by fired team vice president Anucha Browne Sanders. She has leveled a litany of ugly charges against Thomas. I scratch my head and wonder how either one of them was hired for their position in the first place. Thomas seems downright psychotic. As if the proverbial pig needed another fork in it, the FBI just sent an NBA ref up the river for fixing games. It’s been one embarrassing episode after another.

At this point, many of you are probably asking, “what does this have to do with the Jets” or “what does this have to do with the NFL”? Well, the NFL appears to be slouching in eerily similar fashion. Does the NFL have a dynasty benefiting from favoritism? Check. The New England Patriots have been the darling of the NFL since 2001. And although in the past I would have scoffed at any conspiracy nut jobs who suggested the Pats were guided by the powers that be to their first title due to the events of 9-11, after recent revelations that Bill Belichick violated NFL rules, I’m not so sure anymore. Nothing really would surprise me at this point.

Does the NFL have version of Latrell Sprewell? Where to start? My God, I could swing a dead cat in any direction and I’d hit one. No dead cat available? How about a strangled or electrocuted dog? Check.

Did the NFL change rules to accommodate its dynasty? Well, this is the only comparison that is slightly altered. The NFL did change rules, but to accommodate the Colts, not the Pats.

How about a sex scandal? Sharon Shennoca, meetAnucha Browne Sanders.

Professional sports used to provide an escape from every day reality. I turned to sports to avoid the BS I had to contend with daily. But lately it’s just a case of jumping from a fire into a frying pan. And I’m sick of it. Why watch a game if all I’m going to get is more aggravation? I see teams riddled with dysfunctional and pathological deviants. I go to my crappy job where I’m surrounded by metrosexuals intimidated and terrified for their jobs, and will do anything- and I mean anything- to keep their precious job. I look around me, and I see no integrity left in any of our institutions. Our values, and our culture, have been polluted. At our worst, we glorify cheaters and celebrate illegitimacy. At our best, we simply shrug our shoulders indifferently. Nobody says “I’m sorry” any more. Personal responsibility has gone the way of the dinosaur. What went wrong? That’s another story for another day, but I do see hope that things will change.

There is a rejection of this new, twisted paradigm, and that rejection is reflected in the growing popularity of MMA. Traditional martial arts participants scoff at the MMA and call it “human c*ckfighting”. Initially, I shared this view. But as my own martial arts network expanded, I came to meet these people, and found much to be admired in their spirit and dedication. At heart, MMA aficionados dabble in all martial arts, committing to none. Kung Fu master Allan Lee dismissively refers to this as “chop suey”. But if we dig a little deeper into this sub-culture, we see a group of young men who have had enough of the emasculation of their institutions, and have built foundations and edifices in their own image. Some them have survived a Ritalin saturated childhood, where their “boys will be boys” behavior was practically criminalized by psychopathic feminists. They have come into adulthood still under attack, only now they can fight back, and eager to do so. In a broader sense, martial arts provide the sole remaining place that is uncorrupted by political correctness, pseudo-authority, and social engineering. It provides an island of order surrounded by a sea of chaos. Initially, I was drawn into martial arts (I started out in Tae Kwon Do) for the cardio-vascular workout, but the attraction that kept me coming back for more was the integrity and tradition of the institution (I now train in JKA Shotokan Karate). Karate is the only thing that gives me an honest measure of my worth; everywhere else, the scales have been rigged. In Shotokan, there is no push button advancement. No quotas. No superficial, arbitrary awards. Non-hackers need not apply.

Above and beyond the physical training, there is also a mental and spiritual training. And in that world of Budo, I am beginning to see things clearly for the first time. I’ve crossed the Rubicon; no longer am I a thing that simply stares at life, I am an active participant in it. On the shore I left behind, is the atrophy and ennui of a wasted existence. After this glorious epiphany, the NFL by way of comparison is a complete joke. How could I possibly bring myself to sit and stare at a tv screen for three hours and watch this spectacle of clowns and jugglers? Sure, I’ll still check in, but not with passion and intensity I once had. The NFL has only earned my contempt. It really means nothing to me any more. It’s become an uncanny metaphor of Johnny Rotten’s cheap holiday in other people’s misery.

I know many of you probably feel betrayed by my sentiments. And that’s ok. Change has to come, and more often than not, it isn’t going to be painless. For you too, one day there will come that critical mass we all must acknowledge, and move ourselves in the right direction, lest you continue to suffer on the karmic wheel, holding onto illusions and bad desires. I've suffered enough.

I fell asleep while I was trying to read this stupidity.