Rams’ Henley Freed on Bail in Drug Case : Courts: Judge denies bid to keep the cornerback in jail after his indictment on suspicion of being involved in a cross-country cocaine ring. Prosecutors may appeal.

Los Angeles Rams cornerback Darryl Henley was released on $200,000 bail after pleading innocent Friday to charges that he participated in a drug ring that shipped large amounts of cocaine to cities across the country.

Appearing in U.S. District Court, Henley smiled broadly when Magistrate Judge Ronald W. Rose denied a bid by federal prosecutors to keep the football player in custody until his trial.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Deirdre Z. Elliot argued that Henley represented a flight risk and posed a danger to the public, because he had engaged in a cocaine ring that caused large quantities of the drug to be sold on the nation’s streets.

Earlier Friday, Henley surrendered in Santa Ana to federal authorities who had sought a warrant for his arrest after a federal grand jury indicted him and a former Rams cheerleader, Tracy Donaho, on charges of cocaine possession and conspiring to operate an illicit drug network that involved cross-country narcotics shipments.

The indictment identifies Henley, Donaho and three others as participants in a conspiracy to transfer two shipments of cocaine this summer from Henley’s home in Brea to drop-off points in Atlanta and Memphis, using the 20-year-old Donaho as a courier.

Donaho will be arraigned next week, according to Assistant U.S. Atty. John Rayburn, who declined to comment on reports that the former cheerleader was cooperating with prosecutors.

During a contentious hearing to determine whether Henley should be granted bail, both Elliot and Rayburn told Judge Rose that the football player had not maintained a “stable residence” for the last six months, and that he had refused to disclose his whereabouts to Drug Enforcement Agency officials.

Eliot also said Henley was known to have previously carried a 9-millimeter handgun, and had recruited people to transport drugs across the country.

Clad in faded blue jeans, a faded long-sleeve denim shirt, and black high-top sneakers, Henley stood erect alongside his attorney, Gerald L. Chaleff of Los Angeles, who urged the judge to grant bail.

Pointing to Henley’s parents and an uncle seated in the courtroom, Chaleff said the athlete’s family members had strong ties to the area, and were willing to pledge their homes to guarantee Henley’s bail.

“He’s not going to go anywhere,” Chaleff said. “If he wanted to flee, he could have done so anytime prior to this,” because his attorneys had told him he was likely to be indicted.

Rose granted bail, and ordered Henley to surrender his passport--which the football player said is lost--or to sign a declaration that he will not apply for a new one.

The judge also barred Henley from traveling out of Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Orange counties.

Prosecutors indicated that they may appeal the judge’s decision to grant bail.

Henley and other defendants are expected to appear in court next week. The athlete remains on the Rams 53-man roster but is not expected to play again this season.

Besides Henley and Donaho, the federal grand jury also indicted Rafael (Ralph) Bustamante, 28, identified as the supplier of “multikilogram quantities of cocaine” to Henley.

The other two charged were Willie Haghey McGowan, 30, of Duarte, accused of packaging the drugs in suitcases for Donaho to carry on her cross-country flights, and Gary West, 30, of Memphis, who allegedly met Donaho in Tennessee and picked up four kilos of cocaine.