PRO FOOTBALL / DAILY REPORT : Vikings’ Harris: ‘Violence Is Wrong’

Saying he’s not a violent person, Minnesota Viking defensive end James Harris apologized Thursday for having “brought shame” upon himself and his wife by striking her.

Harris also said that he is not a bigamist, although his agent later said that Harris technically is married to two women.

In his first public comments since his legal troubles began, Harris repeatedly apologized for the incident that landed him in jail for five days.

“Friday, I brought a lot of shame upon myself,” Harris told reporters. “I shamed everyone--my family, my wife, my [estranged] wife and the Vikings. . . . Violence is wrong. Nothing good comes out of violence.”

The Vikings have said that they decided before the incident not to offer Harris a contract for next season.

Harris was charged with third-degree assault in the Dec. 29 incident, which left his second wife with a broken nose and broken collarbone. He was released from a Minneapolis jail Wednesday after posting bail.

According to a criminal complaint, Harris and his wife, identified only as J.C.H., began quarreling Friday after returning home from a night out. The complaint says that after his wife tried to leave, the 6-foot-6, 265-pound Harris pulled the 108-pound woman back into the building by her hair and later struck her with his hand, throwing her against the back of an elevator.

Police in Eden Prairie, Minn., are investigating Harris’ marital status after a Philadelphia woman came forward to say that she was married to Harris. His agent, Jeff Durand, said Harris believed he had divorced his first wife, Bonnie Harris, before he got married again last year. However, Durand said, the divorce was never finalized.

AFC

Cleveland Pitches Plan to Owners

Cleveland Mayor Michael White presented his case to NFL owners in Atlanta, but overturning the intended move of the Browns to Baltimore remains a longshot.

“We in Cleveland still have a very, very long way to go,” White said after a three-hour meeting of two NFL committees and a Cleveland delegation.

White said one accomplishment was showing the NFL’s stadium and finance committees that the city’s $175 million financial package to induce Browns owner Art Modell to stay in Cleveland was solid.

“Rock solid,” Neil Austrian, NFL president, said in a separate meeting.

The bulk of the money would go to renovating aging Cleveland Stadium. That didn’t please all the owners.

“I would rather see them build a new stadium, but I’m not moving to Cleveland,” said Tom Benson, owner of the New Orleans Saints.

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Mike White said after meeting with team owner Al Davis that he assumed he would be back as coach of the Oakland Raiders next season.

White, said to be in danger of losing his job after the Raiders lost their final six games en route to an 8-8 season, said he “feels good about things that we accomplished,” “even though the last few weeks weren’t fun.”

He added that he didn’t think there would be any changes in the coaching staff and that defensive end Pat Swilling, the team leader in sacks, has signed a contract for next season.

The Raiders have missed the playoffs seven times in the past 10 seasons.