Jury orders 'Pacman' Jones to pay $11 million to Las Vegas strip club employees

[03EBZ06]

LAS VEGAS – Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones must pay $11 million in damages to two Las Vegas strip club employees injured in 2007 when a lone gunman claiming he was doing Jones' bidding opened fire outside the club.

Tommy Urbanski, a club manager who was left paralyzed from the waist down, and Aaron Cudworth, a bouncer who was wounded, stand to collect after the late Friday verdict. Urbanksi's bones were shattered in the shooting that occurred after Jones and several other people were ejected from the club. The shooter later demanded $15,000 from Jones for "services rendered."

Jones' lawyer, Lisa Rasmussen, said there is no evidence Jones was behind the shooting. She said Jones, who has played five years in the NFL, didn't have the cash to cover the award because he won't receive his first paycheck of the season until September. Rasmussen plans to appeal the verdict.

"It's obviously a devastating amount for him financially," Rasmussen said. "He has really worked hard to make a comeback with his NFL career."

She said the jury in the civil case was likely swayed by the sympathetic sight of Urbanski in his wheelchair and Jones' celebrity.

"People perceive him as a person who is able to pay $11 million," she said. "Adam doesn't even get paid until he plays his first game."

Cudworth's lawyer, Richard Schonfeld, declared the verdict fair, saying the bouncer continues to grapple with "constant pain from being shot in the chest and arm." Cudworth was awarded $1.3 million, including $300,000 in punitive damages. The verdict was first reported by the celebrity website TMZ.

"I am pleased that Mr. Jones has finally been held accountable," Schonfeld said, adding that his client "is pleased to have closure."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2012/0...#ixzz1y0gp4BOX

[big dog cowboy]

[Yeagermeister]

Good luck actually getting it

[casmith07]

I wonder if he even has $11M.

[T-RO]

And this guy--after all that BS--was brought into be a Dallas Cowboy, by none other than Mr. Jerry Jones.

[DallasEast]

It took five posts before Jerry Jones was mentioned? CowboysZone is slipping nowadays.

There must be some way to mentally reach young professional athletes about the misuse of their income, before negative crap happens as a consequence of their new-found wealth. Most work so hard to get to the pro level. It's a shame when much or all of that hard work is simply thrown away. Perhaps one day the simple understanding that anyone can both have fun and be smart will eventually sink in.

[ShiningStar]

Originally Posted by T-RO

And this guy--after all that BS--was brought into be a Dallas Cowboy, by none other than Mr. Jerry Jones.

dont think the fans were screaming for it look at all the threads here saying sing this guy isng that guy this guy is my favorite, its not jsut one person.

[wittenacious]

Originally Posted by T-RO

And this guy--after all that BS--was brought into be a Dallas Cowboy, by none other than Mr. Jerry Jones.

There are a lot of 'Boys fans that thought we needed ... and still think we need ... more bad boy types in Cowboys unis, in order to help create a tougher team. Not my take on it, but in "Pacman's" case, Jerry took a chance.

After having a sit down interview with him, and needing/wanting another potentially effective CB, Jerry rolled the dice. "Very low risk, high potential reward decision" was the general consensus at the time, as I recall.

You remember, once Adam proved he couldn't keep himself in check, even with a whole lot of team support and monitoring, he was cut. I don't blame Jerry for trying, hoping it would work out. Adam still had the "Pacman" persona in him and wasn't ready to grow up at that point. That's more on him than Jerry, IMO.

Now it sounds like he has, in fact, finally decided to grow up ... or so he says. Maybe? Hope so. An 11+ million dollar judgment against him for specific past mistakes — pre-Cowboys mistakes — will have that sort of a rude-awakening effect.

At least he's now trying to talk to younger players — rookies on his team, and speaking at the 2012 NFL rookie symposium — about not making the same off-field mistakes that have defined his NFL career. Some good may yet come of his past immature behavior.

[jnday]

Originally Posted by Yeagermeister

Good luck actually getting it

If Pac owed them a million or two he may be in trouble. If he owes them11 million, they are in trouble. They will never see that kind of money.

[BraveHeartFan]

They'll never see it.

[BlueStar3398]

$11M!? Whoa! That was an expensive night out at the strip club!

[Rynie]

Originally Posted by BlueStar3398

$11M!? Whoa! That was an expensive night out at the scrip club!

Fixed it for you.

[jobberone]

Those kind of very large awards esp when there is no criminal culpability behind it tend to get reduced or thrown out.

[Seven]

Originally Posted by DallasEast

It took five posts before Jerry Jones was mentioned? CowboysZone is slipping nowadays.

There must be some way to mentally reach young professional athletes about the misuse of their income, before negative crap happens as a consequence of their new-found wealth. Most work so hard to get to the pro level. It's a shame when much or all of that hard work is simply thrown away. Perhaps one day the simple understanding that anyone can both have fun and be smart will eventually sink in.

And only six to bring it to everyones attention.

Anywho.......jerry has always wanted to be the guy to hopefully turn someone around. He's close to certain players. He takes affection to them and there's nothing wrong with that. The Pacman signing however, was pissin up a rope.

[ninja]

Originally Posted by jnday

If Pac owed them a million or two he may be in trouble. If he owes them11 million, they are in trouble. They will never see that kind of money.

No. Pacman is in trouble. It is not an all-or-nothing situation. Pacman is to make $1M this year. "They" will go after any and all money he makes.

I'm no lawyer but I'm guessing a lien will go on Pacman for $11M. A court will then determine how much of his wages are garnished. The court will probably give Pacman a certain amount to live off of and the rest will go to the plaintifs. I'm also guessing Pacman will declare bankruptcy. I have no idea how bankruptcy laws work.