When sports and courts mix, America watches

As Roger Clemens watches jury selection for his perjury trial this week, America prepares for another rendition of its real-life theater: sports figures on trial.

Two high-profile cases in the 1990s put the spotlight on the public disciplining of sports legends: O.J. Simpson’s 1995 criminal trial, in which the Hall of Fame running back was found not guilty of murdering his former wife and her friend, and heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson’s conviction on rape charges in 1992.

“People are fascinated by athletes,” said Alan Dershowitz, who served as Tyson’s appeal attorney and was an advisor to Simpson’s defense team. “We find it impossible to do something like they do, but when they do something terrible, we are shocked.”

Sports heroes fall frequently from their pedestals, and the subsequent trials often include court theatrics Hollywood would love. The trial of the 1919 Black Sox saw two signed confessions go missing for years. Simpson’s trial and its “If the glove doesn’t fit, you must acquit” mantra eventually inspired a “Seinfeld” episode. These antics only draw the public’s eye closer.

“There are obviously all the boyhood dreams wrapped up in sports figures,” celebrity attorney Mark Geragos said. “Then you’ve got the fascination with people in power or in fame who then run into trouble, so it kind of produces the perfect storm in the interest of the public.”

In anticipation of Clemens’ trial and its potential fireworks, here is one opinion of the most dramatic trials involving sports figures. It takes into account the celebrity of the athlete, the nature of the allegations and whatever twists added drama along the way. Cases such as Michael Vick’s and Plaxico Burress’ were left off as they never made it to court, the athletes reaching plea agreements first.

1. O.J. Simpson’s claim: “Absolutely, 100%, not guilty”

Simpson’s ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman were killed June 12, 1994. Five days later, Simpson and his friend driving a white Bronco led more than 20 police cars and another 20 news helicopters on a low-speed chase through Southern California.

“That wasn’t a sports case,” Simpson’s attorney Robert Shapiro said. “There was a sports figure involved, but it was more than a sports case.”

The trial began Jan. 29 and extended into October. When the jury returned a verdict of not guilty, the first “real” reality television show in America came to a close.

“That launched CNN,” Shapiro said. “It was a small, emerging network that didn’t have a tremendous audience. By the end of the trial, it had one of the largest audiences and was shown across the entire country, and launched nearly all of the court-related talk shows.”

2. Cassius Clay vs. United States

Heavyweight champion Clay, who had changed his name to Muhammad Ali, was drafted into the Army during the Vietnam War in 1967. Ali refused to enlist, declaring himself a conscientious objector. When the draft board refused to grant him that status, Ali was convicted of draft evasion and stripped of his heavyweight title and his boxing license.

Ali “was probably the most well-known figure in the world at the time, so obviously there was a tremendous amount of politics attached to prosecuting him,” Shapiro said. “I think one of the reasons we don’t have a draft anymore is because results like Ali’s happened.”

Ali spent his three years of suspension speaking out against the war at colleges and universities across the country. His appeal reached the Supreme Court in June 1971 and his conviction was unanimously reversed.

3. Mike Tyson’s rape trial

Arrested in July 1991 on suspicion of rape, Tyson’s trial began in January 1992. The two-week trial saw Tyson and his accuser, Desiree Washington, take the stand in an Indianapolis courthouse.

“The biggest [sports case] in Europe, all over the world, was Mike Tyson,” Dershowitz said. “My biggest challenge was to humanize him, to show that nobody should be afraid of him.… Mike Tyson is actually a very sweet guy, but you wouldn’t know that from the media.”

At the time, Tyson held a 41-1 record, and the 18-year-old Washington was the reigning Miss Black Rhode Island. The jury believed Washington’s recap of her encounter with Tyson, which both parties agreed began when he called her after 1:30 a.m. on July 19 to go to a party. Tyson insisted the sex was consensual, but he was sentenced to six years in prison. He served three.

4. 1919 Black Sox

Members of the 1919 White Sox confessed decades later to intentionally losing that year’s World Series, but when charges were first levied, only Eddie Cicotte and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson signed confessions. However, when the eight members entered the courtroom, Cicotte’s and Jackson’s confessions had gone missing, and the two players quickly recanted.

Missing the key piece of evidence, the prosecution’s case fell apart, and the players were acquitted. Years later, the two confessions were found in possession of the lawyers who represented White Sox owner Charles Comiskey.

5. USFL vs. NFL

The 3-year-old United States Football League sued the NFL in 1986 with the claim the NFL had created a monopoly of television broadcasting rights of football. The USFL, led by Donald Trump, sought $567 million in damages, which under antitrust law would have tripled.

The jury found in favor of the USFL but signaled it thought some of its claims had been trumped up, and as a result awarded the infant league only $1, which did indeed become $3.

6. Jayson Williams shoots his limo driver

The New Jersey Nets forward was reportedly playing with a shotgun when it discharged and killed limousine driver Costas “Gus” Christofi. Williams was accused of covering up the shooting, and was convicted of four counts of a cover-up in 2002. The jury remained deadlocked concerning reckless manslaughter charges.

In 2003, Williams settled with Christofi’s family for $2.75 million. In 2010, eight years after Christofi’s death, Williams pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and was sentenced to five years in prison.

7. Barry Bonds, perjury

Baseball’s newly crowned home run king entered the courtroom in March facing four charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. Although Bonds’ trainer Greg Anderson refused to testify, and spent a year in jail, Bonds’ former mistress and former major league players Jason Giambi and Jeremy Giambi did take the stand.

“Bonds was not well-received” by the public, Dershowitz said. “Baseball is a genteel sport, a gentlemen’s sport, and it is a sport in which its players are generally highly regarded.”

In April, the jury found Bonds guilty of one count of obstruction of justice but could not reach a decision on the perjury charges.

8. Tonya Harding covers up attack on Nancy Kerrigan

When Kerrigan was attacked after a figure skating practice in January 1994, the trail led back to her main rival, Harding. But Harding insisted she did not know of the attack before it happened. According to Harding, her former husband and her bodyguard orchestrated the attack on their own, and she became involved only when they tried to cover their tracks.

When her ex-husband accepted a plea deal in exchange for his testimony against her, Harding began cooperating with prosecutors. She pleaded guilty to hindering prosecution, a felony, but was never prosecuted for additional crimes.

The United States Figure Skating Assn. banned Harding for life and stripped her of her 1994 U.S. Championships title.

9. Rae Carruth hires a hit man

Carolina Panthers receiver Rae Carruth’s girlfriend, Cherica Adams, was fatally shot Nov. 16, 1999. As a pregnant Adams sat injured in her car, she called police and said Carruth was involved. She said he had stopped his vehicle directly in front of hers while another pulled up alongside her, and someone in the adjacent vehicle had opened fire, then Carruth sped away.

Carruth was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, shooting into an occupied vehicle and using an instrument to destroy an unborn child. He received a prison sentence of 18 to 24 years.

Adams fell into a coma and died Dec. 14, but doctors managed to save her baby.

10. Kobe Bryant accused of sexual assault

Before Bryant underwent surgery July 2, 2003, he checked into the Lodge and Spa at Cordillera in Edwards, Colo., on June 30. While he was there, a spa employee alleged Bryant assaulted her, while he insisted the encounter was consensual.

For the preliminary court proceedings, Bryant flew back and forth between Colorado and Los Angeles to play in Lakers games at night and be in the courtroom in the morning. As the court date approached, the prosecution’s best hopes hinged on the employee taking the stand, which she refused to do. So, charges were dismissed, but not before sordid details of the night in question were made public.

douglas.farmer@latimes.com

twitter.com/d_farmer