LANHAM, Md. (CBSDC) — Four men will stand trial for the shooting death of former Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor beginning in August.

Taylor was shot in the leg during by armed intruders during an attempted robbery of his Florida home in 2007. He underwent surgery to repair damage to his femoral artery, but would eventually succumb to his injuries.

Timothy Lee Brown, Jason Scott Mitchell, Eric Rivera, and Charles K. Wardlow face first-degree murder and armed burglary charges in connection to the shooting. The defendants could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted.

Venjah Hunte, who pleaded guilty to degree murder in 2009, is expected to testify against the defendants. He is currently serving a 29 year prison sentence.
The Redskins selected Taylor with the fifth overall pick in the 2004 draft. He was elected to the Pro Bowl in 2006 and posthumously in 2007.

He was 24 at the time of his death.


(cbslocal.com)

The day after what would have been Sean Taylor’s 30th birthday, a new trial date was set in Miami for the man who allegedly shot him to death in November 2007.

After a number of postponements, Eric Rivera Jr., 22, will stand trial Aug. 12, Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Dennis Murphy said Tuesday (via the Associated Press).

The Washington Redskins’ safety, who grew up and lived in the Miami area, died Nov. 27, 2007, the day after he was shot during what is believed to have been a robbery at his Miami-area home. Taylor was recovering from a knee injury at his Palmetto Bay home and was not with the team.

Three other men, who are, like Rivera, from the Fort Myers area, have entered not-guilty pleas and are being tried separately. A fifth man, Venjah Hunte, previously pleaded guilty to murder and burglary charges in 2008. He is expected to testify against the other men. In a letter to Nathan Fenno of the Washington Times earlier this year, he wrote:

“To begin, I would like to send my deepest apology to the family of Sean Taylor. I know an apology won’t bring him back, but I hope one day they could find it in their hearts to forgive me. …

“My thought or intentions weren’t to hurt him or noone [sic] else, let alone murder, it was something I thought would never happen. Even though I didn’t pull the trigger I still have to take responsibility for my actions. Period.”

Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III, like many Redskins fans, paused to remember Taylor on Monday. “Happy Birthday Sean Taylor…,” RGIII tweeted, “1 of the Greatest Redskins I never got the chance to meet in this life but will in the next.”


(washingtonpost.com)

Former Redskins safety Sean Taylor was murdered five years ago last Nov. 27. He was shot during a botched robbery in his home and died the next day. He was 24.

"I was thinking to myself, it's kind of like winning the lotto to have a guy like Sean Taylor, to be able to say, ‘That's a friend,"' former teammate Clinton Portis said on the anniversary of Taylor's death. "And many people don't get that opportunity."

Authorities arrested five suspects. Four pleaded not guilty and have yet to go to trial. The fifth, Venjah Hunte, pleaded guilty in 2008 to second-degree murder and burglary while armed in exchange for a 29-year sentence that was part of a plea deal. Hunte was also the only defendant among the five to respond to the Washington Times' Nathan Fenno.

In a letter to the paper written last month, Hunte apologized for what happened in Palmetto Bay, Fla., on Nov. 26, 2007.

"To begin, I would like to send my deepest apology to the family of Sean Taylor,” Hunte wrote in a letter to the Times in response to several questions. “I know an apology won't bring him back, but I hope one day they could find it in their hearts to forgive me. …

“My thought or intentions weren't to hurt him or noone [sic] else, let alone murder, it was something I thought would never happen,” Hunte continued. “Even though I didn't pull the trigger I still have to take responsibility for my actions. Period.”

Taylor was shot in his right leg and the bullet hit his femoral artery. He died the next day. Hunte maintains that he wasn't in the house when the gun went off.

“Back then, I was just existing, I wasn't living life at all,” Hunte wrote, “I was just living the fast life, chasing fast money, doing things my way which would be the wrong way in the end.

“In the last five years, I've had to grow up and mature a lot. I no longer think about or want to indulge in the things I used to, it's just not worth it to me anymore. …

“At this point I feel like if I ever want to be back in society, the change starts now,” Hunte wrote, “and that's how I live from now on by surrounding myself with positive things at all times.”

READ THE ENTIRE LETTER HERE.


(cbssports.com)

When Sean Taylor went full-speed in practice, that included hitting his Washington Redskins teammates like he did opponents in games. But not tight end Chris Cooley, his friend with whom he talked to every day.

“He never did that to me,” Cooley said. “He would always come up and said: ‘I love you, buddy. I won’t do that to you.’ And I was always thankful.”

Cooley got that respect from Taylor for 3½ seasons. Then, in late November 2007, Taylor was dead after being shot at his South Florida home. The Redskins had to cope with a loss that was far greater than anything they could endure on the field.

“Just the reality that a guy that you’ve been living with in this locker room is no longer here, it was just like a surreal experience,” linebacker Lorenzo Alexander said. “You’re just trying to comprehend all that. That was probably the hardest part: here one day and the next minute gone.”

More than five years after Taylor’s death, the Kansas City Chiefs are in the aftermath of another tragedy after linebacker Jovan Belcher killed his girlfriend last Saturday morning and then drove to the practice facility and killed himself. The differences are many, including the circumstances of each player’s death, but the process of going through death and football is all too common in recent years.

In 2010, Denver Broncos wide receiver Kenny McKinley committed suicide. In 2009, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry fell out of a pickup truck driven by his fiancee and died.

In 2007, Broncos running back Damien Nash died of a heart attack while playing pickup basketball in the offseason, just months after Denver cornerback Darrent Williams was shot and killed in the early morning of New Year's Day.

“Everybody kind of handles it in a different way,” said Mike Shanahan, who coached the Broncos during the deaths of Nash and Williams. “It’s a really, really tough time in an organization when something tragic like that happens. Your heart goes out to them, but everybody will persevere and they’ll work through it.”
Six Redskins players remain from 2007, which became a season dedicated to Taylor. It’s impossible to be around the team and not think about Taylor; his No. 21 is plastered on the guard’s booth that allows entry to Redskins Park.

And while Taylor died five years ago, Cooley said it’s not hard to remember what it was like, especially given the Kansas City tragedy.

“There was nothing to latch on to. There was nothing to think like, ‘I have this.’ It was, I guess, an ‘in awe’ situation. You just keep going,” Cooley said. “You just kept playing football. Everyone has grief and everyone deals with situations differently, and my way to do it is just keep living, doing what I do.”

That’s what the Chiefs were forced to do, playing Sunday at home less than 36 hours after Belcher murdered Kasandra Perkins and then turned a gun on himself. They beat the Carolina Panthers 27-21.

Taylor was shot Nov. 26, 2007, and died of excessive bleeding the next day. The Redskins lost at home to Buffalo on Dec. 2 and traveled for the funeral the following day. On Thursday night, Dec. 6, they beat Chicago behind backup quarterback Todd Collins to start a four-game winning streak that put them in the playoffs.

“I don’t think there’s a right or a wrong answer to it. Personally, getting away from it does help,” Alexander said. “That’s with anything that may be going on with your life, to going out there and just playing and using your teammates to kind of lean on and playing the game that you love kind of gets you away from the situation.

“But obviously, at some point you have to deal with it, whether you’re getting help or talking to a counselor. It relieves the pain temporarily, but at the same time, you’ve still got to address it at some point.”


(washingtontimes.com)

It was five years ago today that Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor died after a shooting at his home. Taylor's death was one of the most shocking and affecting in recent sports history, and the memory of it still resonates strongly and emotionally with Taylor's fans, friends and former teammates. This video tribute includes insights from former college and professional teammates Antrel Rolle, Clinton Portis, Ed Reed, Chris Cooley and Santana Moss as well as Redskins owner Dan Snyder, who smiles as he remembers Portis badgering him to draft Taylor.

I remember hearing of Taylor's death, of course. I was a baseball writer at the time, but anyone who followed sports even tangentially heard the story, and no one could get their arms around it in a way that made any sense. Five years later, as I heard today from fans, watched the video and read the columns by those who were covering the story at the time, it's clear that Taylor's death is still affecting a large number of people.

Rolle talks about how he still watches Taylor highlights on YouTube. Cooley remembers how grateful he was that Taylor never practiced his trademark big hits against him in practice. And Moss breaks down in tears remembering the way the news affected him. If you're a Redskins fan, I know the loss of Taylor is a wound on your heart that still hasn't healed. I invite you to share your memories and your feelings about him in the comments section of this post.


(espn.com)

It’s five years since I got a 7 a.m. phone call on a Tuesday morning from the office to say Sean Taylor had died, and all I have still is the same emptiness. And questions. Hard questions. Some of which I know the answers to but don’t want to hear. And others no one can know.

I still wonder: How does a kid who had met Taylor — a friend of his sister who had attended a party once at his house — end up being part of a botched home invasion and robbery that ends up costing Taylor his life? How many bad decisions did he have to be a part of before he threw away his own life?

Why hasn’t the man fingered as the gunman been sent away for life already? How is Eric Rivera, who was 17 at the time, not scheduled to see trial until next April — assuming that date isn’t postponed for some judicial matter that prevents Taylor’s family and friends from perhaps even an ounce of understanding or closure?

I wonder when has someone you knew actually died after they had been shot in the leg? Five years later, the chances of a bullet striking the femoral artery, of losing so much blood in so little time, just seems so random and wrong.

Then there are the what-ifs about his career, which seemed destined for more Pro Bowls, more comparisons to the all-time greats at his position. How good could Sean Taylor have been?

We tend to be kind to the supernovas that burn so brilliantly for so few years before leaving us much too soon. Sean Taylor has become football’s James Dean, Jim Morrison or Tupac Shakur — taken in the infancy of his fame.

Would he have been Ronnie Lott-good, better than the greatest hard-hitting safety in NFL history? Or just Kenny Easley- and Donnie Shell-good, which is still great? Would he have put up better numbers than Ed Reed and gone down as the best University of Miami safety to play in the NFL?

Or would his penchant for controlled malice have gotten him in more hot water than James Harrison in the new safety-conscious NFL?

There are also the personal questions Sean Taylor never answered. Who was he? I tried to find out about a month before his death, but he wouldn’t let me in.
“You don’t want to see the good in a person like Sean,” Clinton Portis, his closest friend on the team, told me then. “You don’t want to understand the success or the pain he’s went through to be where he is.”

Only after his passing did we find out what a doting father he was to Jackie, the 18-month-old baby daughter innocently sashaying past her father’s casket, the most sorrowful moment I can remember from 2007.

Really, what kind of father could Sean Taylor be? That little girl is 6 today. She deserved to find out.

Before all the testimonials at his memorial service of his childhood and the recent spiritual changes in him brought on by the birth of his daughter, we only knew that violence surrounded Taylor’s career and life. The son of a police chief, he had his own run-ins with the law — including allegedly chasing down thieves who stole his ATVs and pointing a gun at them.

Finally, how could someone we learned more about in death than in life connect so deeply with a fan base? Before Robert Griffin III, Sean Taylor had his own mystique and almost cult-like following.

He played a medieval sport with a fierceness and passion that still endears him to so many, some of whom still mourn him like family today, five years after his passing.


(washingtonpost.com)

Last Saturday, as part of the Redskins "Homecoming Game" vs the Panthers, the Redskins held several events around the city, including a lunch with Sean's Dad, Pedro "Pete," where I got the chance to talk and interview him. Also there was Pete's son, and Sean's brother, Gabriel, who is as nice and humble as can be. Much of the buzz of the afternoon was how good Gabriel is and that he has highlights on YouTube. Indeed. And they are quite amazing. Reportedly (I don't buy this for one minute), Shanahan only cares about a prospect's 10 best plays, so Gabriel would fit that nicely. If only the NFL draft was like Major League Baseball's the Redskins could draft the rights to him now.



Via Generation Nexxt:
Gabriel Taylor #21, safety for the Florida City Razorbacks 90's was selected as the Miami Dolphins Youth Player of week. With a key interception for a touchdown, Gabriel sealed a victory against the Gwen Cherry Bulls in the Championship game.

Here's video of Gabriel for both basketball and football. At the 3:05 mark shows him swishing a NBA three pointer and game film begins of all his point guard dishing. He's clearly playing against kids bigger than him and likely older than him.

At the 7:30 mark, the football highlights begin from his 90 pound league. They're all very Sean Taylor-esque. Out-juking players as a RB, great jumps on interceptions, tackling guys bigger than him, and some big pops.


(hogshaven.com)

It’s been nearly five years since Sean Taylor was killed at his home in Florida. Time hasn’t dimmed the memories of him for fans or, especially, his father, Pedro Taylor. He was back in town for the Redskins homecoming game Sunday vs. Carolina, along with Taylor’s daughter and other family members. Here’s a little bit from a short conversation with him (tough to hear at some points because of the noise):

Q: What’s it like to be back?
A: It’s beautiful. It’s been a great, exciting time. The reception was nice last night.

Q: When was the last time you were back?
A: It was about less than a year ago. I try to come back once a year to a game to show my love.

Q: Is it hard for you? Odd?
A: I think it’s more rewarding and healing for me to come back. It helps just bring back memories and have a good time. That’s what we had here, a good time.

Q: What memories have you had since you’ve been here?
A: Watching my granddaughter being held by by [Sean] over here in the corner and just having fun.

Q: Does your granddaughter like being around?
A: This is her second time back. She’s very excited and it’s a great feeling.

Q: It must be nice to have here come here and have people tell her what they think or remember about her dad.
A: As she gets older she understands more. She definitely will be appreciative. I’m appreciative. The family’s appreciative.

Q: [Tough to hear question; was about the trial of Taylor’s accused killers].
A: I’m in every trial. Right now we’re getting ready to start the real trial.

Q: Is it nice to get to that point?
A: It will be.

Q: Will that bring any closure?
A: There never will be any closure. It’s hard to lose a child. It’s hard for a parent to bury a kid. I respect the fact that God makes some mistakes [inaudible].

Q: It’s hard to believe it’s been five years.
A: Very hard. But he’ll always live forever in my life.


(washingtonexaminer.com)

The Washington Redskins secondary invited Pedro Taylor, the father of the late Sean Taylor, to join in a pregame huddle before Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers.

Taylor shook hands with members of the Redskins defense, then huddled with them in a pregame circle.

Sean Taylor was murdered in his Florida home five years ago this month. His father was in Washington as part of the team's 80th anniversary celebration. Sean was honored as one of the 80 greatest Redskins at an event Saturday night. Pedro accepted the honor with Sean's six-year-old daughter, Jackie.



This was an undeniable goosebump-raising moment, even if the "we ride together, we die together" mantra felt too uncomfortable given the circumstances.


(usatoday.com)

MIAMI -- The trial has been delayed from November to April for the alleged shooter in the 2007 slaying of former Washington Redskins star safety Sean Taylor.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Dennis Murphy on Monday set the trial to begin April 15 for 22-year-old Eric Rivera Jr. It was previously set for Nov. 5 but the chief prosecutor has a conflict.

He's one of five defendants from the Fort Myers area who are accused of killing Taylor during a botched robbery at the player's Miami-Dade County home. Four have pleaded not guilty and are being tried separately. Each faces a possible life sentence if convicted.

A fifth man previously pleaded guilty to murder and burglary charges and is likely to testify against the others.

Taylor starred in college at the University of Miami.


(sacbee.com)

Clinton Portis called it a career this past week finishing out with 9,923 yards and 75 touchdowns. He was the Redskins’ second all-time leading rusher with 6,824 yards, a mere 648 yards behind franchise leader John Riggins. Unfortunately No.26 missed out on his goal of eclipsing 10,000 rushing yards. He ended his career 77 yards shy of that mark.

The man who was known back in 2005 for the colorful costumes and prank characters signed a 1-day contract to retire as a Redskin. Portis is now looking forward to finding a passion for football again and maybe making his way into the radio business.

Clinton Portis joined 106.7 The Fan in D.C. with Holden and Danny to discuss becoming good friends with Sean Taylor, meeting Dan Snyder at an ESPY’s after party, the possibility of working for the Redskins/NFL, not working for the Washington Redskins just yet and meeting Robert Griffin III.

How did a bond between you and Sean Taylor became so close?
“I don’t know. That’s like saying how did you get to be friends with somebody? It just falls into place. You think about the times or you think about the moments and all of a sudden I still reflect to the day that the Redskins was really thinking about drafting Kellen Winslow Jr. over Sean Taylor. I told coach, ‘I think Kellen Winslow Jr. is a great player, but man if we don’t draft Sean Taylor we missing out.’ Coach was like, ‘You really think so?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah. Really. Sean Taylor is going to be special.’ He was and forever will be. There’s not a day that goes by where you don’t think of him and somebody always mentions him. It will always be fresh in everybody’s mind. Just to have that luxury and opportunity to know him and be around him and to say he was a friend.”

Tell us about the first time you met Dan Snyder?
“I think it was at ESPN afterparty, the ESPY’s afterparty. I had no clue who he was. One of his best friends, who I later find out to be Dr.Tony Roberts walked up and thought I was Michael Vick. He was disappointed when I told him I wasn’t. He kind of walked off. I think Mr.Snyder walked up behind him just to kind of smooth things out. He was like, ‘I know who you are.’ I was just again having a conversation with him. I didn’t know who he was, but I was just having conversation. It turned out to be him.”

What are you going to do now? Work for the Redskins? Work for the NFL?
“I have some things in the works, but being around the team or being on the radio…I think it would be fun. I think always having a passion for football. I’ve always been a fan. I got to find the love for the game again. I got to become a fan again with not playing and just to have that excitement for the game and to have the opportunity to talk about the game and get people the inside scoop to things that are going on. I think that would still be fun.”

So if you were working for the Redskins now you wouldn’t tell me?
“[Laughs] I’m not working for the Redskins man.”

Have you had a chance to be around Robert Griffin III? Do you know him?
“I talked to him on twitter a couple of times and yesterday was the first time I had the opportunity to meet him and chat with him, but it was in the midst of being right around the press conference. A good 10-15 minutes and I’ve always been a fan of his even when he was in school. I told him yesterday I remember telling my best friend like two years ago that man he [Robert Griffin III] needed to go the Redskins. He’s here now. I think he’s going to be great for the city. I think he’s going to bring a lot of spark and a lot of character and they are going to enjoy him.”


(sportsradiointerviews.com)

WASHINGTON – The Washington Redskins announced on Friday the 10 contributors they have added to their list of the greatest all-time – a list that now includes former running back Clinton Portis and safety Sean Taylor and linebacker LaVar Arrington.

The Redskins announced their 70 greatest players and coaches in celebration of their 70th anniversary in 2002 and added an additional 10 this year, the 80th anniversary, in a campaign they titled “10 for 80.”

Joining Portis, who announced his retirement at Redskins Park on Thursday, and Taylor, who was killed in a botched robbery at his home in 2007, among the honorees are general manager Bobby Beathard, offensive line coach Joe Bugel, offensive tackles Terry Hermeling and Jon Jansen, receiver Roy Jefferson, safety Richie Petitbon and left tackle Chris Samuels.

Players and head coaches were available to be selected in the initial group, while the additional selections announced Friday allowed for the selection of assistant coaches.


(fredricksburg.com)

Miami Gulliver begins every practice commemorating the late Sean Taylor, the former two-way star with the Raiders and safety with the University of Miami and Washington Redskins who was fatally gunned down in his own home in November 2007.

Coach Earl Sims has his players come together in a moment of silence while facing the scoreboard that bears Taylor’s name. The players then put a lone index finger in the air to honor Taylor as their No. 1 and begin a thunderous rally of claps before practice begins.

The ritual, while also paying homage to the man so iconic in football circles around Miami-Dade County, also reminds current Raiders that what they’re playing for transcends themselves.

“It means something to put on this uniform, and it’s a family of guys who wore this uniform before them, and Sean Taylor, of course we tell [our players] about him,” said Sims, who is going into his seventh year with the program. “Periodically throughout the year, we show some of his highlights, and we speak about the legacy that he has left behind on this field.”

Gulliver will try to translate Taylor’s greatness that it commemorates every day into greatness of its own on the gridiron in 2012.

The Raiders, who reached the 4A regional finals and lost to district foe Booker T. Washington last season, understand that although they may have improved, so have Monsignor Pace and Miami Edison in this district that only allows two teams to qualify for the postseason.

“We can’t live off what we did last year because what we did last year allowed us to have what we had last year,” Sims says. “If we live off our reputation, we’re nothing. We have to put forth a product this year to ensure success.”

Making matters even more challenging for Gulliver is the fact that it doesn’t stack up with most of its opponents numbers-wise.

According to Sims, the Raiders currently have “55 to 60” players on both the varsity and junior varsity squads, with the rosters yet to be divided.

“It’s pretty much like that every year, though,” senior running back Bo Ellis said. “Coach Sims knows that, and that’s why he has us out here conditioning. We condition more than, I would say, any other school in Dade County, and probably anywhere else.”

Ellis, a 5-8, 185-pounder ranked the No. 25 senior in Dade going into the season, wants to be the featured back, but he believes the team doesn’t lose a beat whenever another back enters the game.

“I would say I bring a toughness to the team in the backfield, and that’s just something that all our running backs have really,” Ellis said.

At quarterback, Gulliver has brought in two transfers to compete for the starting job — Alonzo Fanakos and Jowan Watson. Fanakos is a junior, who came from Booker T, and Watson is a sophomore. They both bring a threat of the run that was absent in Gulliver’s quarterback play a year ago.

“They’re eager to learn and work hard, and basically that’s all we need,” Sims says. “We have leadership among the other guys, and we’re just going to help them with the adjustment, the transition into our offense.”

Sims is not ready to announce a leader in the quarterback battle and says both will receive equal reps in the Preseason Classic Friday at Tarpon Springs as he hopes to find his starter after that game.

Whoever wins the competition knows he’ll have some solid targets to throw the ball to, in the form of a couple of Gulliver’s trademark two-way athletes.

Wide receiver/defensive end Stacy Thomas comes in as the No. 9 senior in the Dade Top 25, and wide receiver/defensive back Cornelius Floyd is ranked 19th among Dade juniors.

Thomas takes pride in his ability to draw attention from opponents in hopes of facilitating the game for his teammates

“A lot of teams already know what I’m capable of doing, so a lot of teams will be prowling on me and that’ll free up chances for other people that we have to make plays,” Thomas said.

The versatile Thomas is listed as a four-star outside linebacker on Rivals.com and is ranked 11th in the nation at that position. He’s also being recruited by Florida to play tight end.


(miamiherald.com)

Veteran tight end Chris Cooley says quarterback Robert Griffin III is only the second Washington Redskins rookie he has seen arrive in the NFL and immediately carry himself with the confidence and demeanor of an established player.

The other, Cooley said, was the team’s late safety, Sean Taylor.

“I haven’t seen anything from him [Griffin] to say that he’s a rookie…. It is a phenomenon that he’s come in and not been a rookie,” Cooley said.

Cooley also said of Griffin: “I never see doubt in that kid’s mind.”

Griffin’s ever-growing celebrity continues to be noteworthy. After the Redskins arrived back at Dulles Airport following last week’s preseason-opening triumph at Buffalo, Cooley said, the players turned on a television—and in short order saw two commercials featuring Griffin.

“He’s everywhere,” Cooley said.


(washingtonpost.com)

MIAMI -- A new trial date has been set for the man accused of fatally shooting Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor during a 2007 burglary in Miami.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Dennis Murphy on Thursday set the murder trial for Eric Rivera Jr. for Nov. 5. The trial was delayed after Rivera fired his attorney.

Rivera is one of five defendants from the Fort Myers area who are accused of killing Taylor during a robbery at the player's Miami-Dade County home. Four have pleaded not guilty and are being tried separately. Each faces a possible life sentence if convicted.

A fifth man previously pleaded guilty to murder and burglary and is likely to testify against the others.


(miamiherald.com)

MIAMI -- The trial of the man accused of shooting Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor more than four years ago was postponed indefinitely Thursday morning when Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Dennis J. Murphy scheduled another hearing for July 12.

The trial had been scheduled to begin Monday. Thursday’s decision was the sixth postponement of the trial.

The attorney for Eric Rivera, 22, who police say pulled the trigger in a botched November, 2007 burglary that left Taylor with a mortal wound in his leg, asked for additional time to prepare because he has been on the case only a month.

The attorney, Judd Aronowitz, requested a trial date in October or November, but prosecutor Reid Rubin said he wouldn’t be able to commit to a specific date until mid-summer because of an unsettled schedule.

“My schedule might be a little clearer by July or August,” Rubin told Murphy.

A new date will be discussed at the July hearing, Murphy said.

Rivera and three other men from Fort Myers, Fla., face felony murder and armed burglary charges in connection with Taylor’s death a day after he confronted them in his South Miami home in the wee hours of the morning. All face life in prison. Rivera will be tried first. Three of the defendants, Rivera; Jason Scott Mitchell, 24; and Timmy Lee Brown, 22, were present in court.

A fifth defendant, Venjah Hunte, 24, pleaded guilty and is expected to testify against the others. All five of the men remain incarcerated.
A gag order in the case prevents the attorneys involved from commenting.

The trial has been repeatedly postponed since the first date was set for April, 2008. Rivera fired his previous attorney, Clinton Pitts of Miami, just a month ago despite a warning from Murphy that the trial date would not be moved again.

Richard Sharpstein, a Miami attorney and family friend, said a typical murder case in Miami-Dade County might take one to three years to get to trial, but rarely more.

“This has been an excruciating ordeal for the family,” Sharpstein said during a recent interview. “This case has taken far more time than it should have to be prosecuted. I certainly don’t think the prosecutors have been dragging their feet, but a ridiculous merry-go-round of lawyers and a multitude of [questionable] decisions by the defendants have made it ridiculous and absurd.”

Each trial could last three weeks, especially if jury selection proves challenging, according to local attorneys who declined to be named because of the gag order.

Murphy decided early on that he would not have the case moved to another locale.

The Pro Bowl safety, who grew up in Miami and attended the University of Miami, had been rehabilitating from a knee injury when he visited his Miami home over the Thanksgiving holiday in 2007. Police say the defendants expected the house to be unoccupied when they broke in after 1 a.m. on November 26.

Mitchell had spent four days at the house about two months before the alleged break-in, helping prepare for the 21st birthday party of Taylor’s half-sister, Sasha Johnson. Taylor paid him $300 for mowing his lawn and other services, according to interviews.

Taylor “was literally revered in the community,” Sharpstein said. “He was a local young man who made good.”

Taylor’s girlfriend, high school sweetheart Jackie Garcia, was in the couple’s bedroom with their baby daughter, Jackie, then 18 months, when Taylor grabbed a machete and went to investigate loud noises in the house, she told police. He died a day after sustaining a gunshot wound to his femoral artery.

Jackie Garcia is a niece of actor Andy Garcia.

“Of course they want to see justice for their deceased,” Sharpstein said. “Victims of violent crime are indelibly tattooed for the rest of their life. Nothing can salve their pain.”


(washingtonpost.com)

Clinton Portis and Sean Taylor were stars at the University of Miami before their paths crossed again with the Washington Redskins.  Portis was the the second true freshman to start at running back since the 1975 season at Miami and led them to a national championship in 2001.  Portis was then drafted by the Denver Broncos where he rushed for over 1,500 yards in each of his first two seasons in Denver before he was traded to the Redskins in 2004.  Portis was a two-time Pro Bowl selection and is one of the best running backs to play for the revered Redskins.

Taylor was a free safety and consensus All-American for the University of Miami before he was drafted in the first round (5th overall) by the Redskins in 2004.  Due to his ferocious hits, Taylor’s teammates nicknamed him “Meast,” a portmanteau word from the expression “half man, half beast,” and in 2007, Sports Illustrated named Taylor the hardest-hitting player in the NFL.

Portis talks about his friendship with Taylor as well as what it was like dealing with the loss of a teammate and best friend.

Run to the national championship with Miami and Coach Davis:
Coach Davis was the coach that brought me to Miami and he was a great coach.  It’s unfortunate that his time ended abruptly at UNC-Chapel Hill because I thought they were going to be a national contender last year.  I have the greatest respect for Coach Davis, Coach Coker and the other Miami coaches.

Coming into Miami with the class that we had and seeing where everyone is today is really something special.  I came in with Andre Johnson, Ken Dorsey, Bryant McKinnie, Vernon Cary, Phillip Buchanan and Vince Wilfork in the 1999 recruiting class.

My freshmen year we competed in every game and lost to the traditional powerhouses like Florida State, Virginia Tech and Penn State at the time, but we were in every game and lost in the last couple minutes. The defining moment for us as a team was during my sophomore year when we were finally ranked nationally in the top 5, and we took a trip out to the west coast and lost to the Washington Huskies.  At that moment everyone realized that no one was going to bow down to us, no one was afraid of us and anyone could beat us if we walked in thinking that our opponents would just lie down because we were the University of Miami.  After that we never lost again.  Everyone on that team made up their mind that we were not going to lose again.  We were cheated out of going to the national championship game that year and ended up beating Florida in the Sugar Bowl.  As a team we were upset with the BCS because the BCS put Florida State ahead of us and we had beaten them that season.  After that happened we realized that we couldn’t leave our national championship hopes in the hands of the BCS system, we had to just outright win so there could be no debate.

The chase my junior year was unreal and we had a couple of really close games but we never lost sight of the ultimate goal.  It was tough but it was outstanding to be a part of that chase.

Sean came to Miami after me and he played both running back and safety at the high school level.  I remember thinking, “This kid Sean is tight at running back!” But Sean didn’t want to play running back- he wanted to play safety.  I thought he was crazy for wanting to play safety but it turned out that he was one of the best safeties to play the game so I would say he made the right decision.

Taking about the dynamic between the older and younger players at Miami:
There was definitely a team camaraderie between the guys so I think it made for an easier transition for the younger players from high school to college.  We knew Sean was a hard worker coming in and the older guys always tried to recruit the younger guys for the track team.  We wanted them to come out, run track and participate with us to help make the transition smoother and in turn they feel like part of the team.
By the time Sean came in, all we did was play basketball.  In the off-season you would find our whole team in the gym playing basketball and working out to build that brotherhood.

Talking about playing for Coach Gibbs:
It was the best thing that ever happened to me.  But I will say that Gibbs ran us into the ground!  Coach Gibbs taught me how to become a man and to take responsibility for your actions both on and off the field.   I have the greatest respect for him as a person and all the hard work and dedication that he put in- not only as a coach, but also as a mentor and friend.  He would always give his honest opinion and had the ability to talk to you without being judgmental.  He cared about his players more as people then he did about us winning games.   Don’t get me wrong…he loved winning too.  He got the best out of you when it came to football, but I think it came from how much his players respected him.
I think the defining Coach Gibbs moment for me was seeing how he handled the tragedy with Sean.  At that moment you realized it wasn’t about football with him, but it was about something so much bigger. We saw as a team how much his faith anchored him in all he did.

Talking about his relationship with Sean:
I kept pushing Coach Gibbs to draft Sean Taylor to the Redskins.  People didn’t realize how talented and gifted Sean was because he wasn’t a media darling all the time when he did interviews.  He was much quieter and to himself.  Coach Gibbs used to call me to get me to tell Sean to call him.

The way that Sean developed as a player and how he grew to trust Coach Gibbs was just outstanding.  He never complained and always worked hard.  For example if it was hot outside then he would go outside and run in a full sweat suit and if it was cold he would come out in shorts and a t-shirt and fight through the chills.  You would never hear Sean give excuses like it’s too hot or too cold.  I remember one day I came in to work out and Sean was there dressed in jeans, flip-flops and a sweater.  He said that he would run with me so I didn’t have to work out by myself.  So he ran 100’s with me and when we were done running I find out that it was his third time working out that day.  He had run with every group that came in to work out that day.  He was just that kind of guy.

Sean was on his way to becoming one of the best defensive players to ever play the game. He left his mark on the league for the short time he was here and it’s hard to imagine the player he would have become if he were still here.

Talking about what was going through his mind when he flew down to see Sean in the hospital:
I remember getting a call from a friend who told me what happened so I went down to Miami and saw Sean in the hospital and really thought he was going to get better.  His vital signs were strong and the doctors felt good about his recovery so I went to the hotel for the night but I planned to go back over to the hospital at 6 a.m. the next morning.  I was sitting at dinner with everyone who had flown down that night and the mood was definitely upbeat because we felt like Sean had turned the corner.

I remember getting a knock on my door at 6 a.m. and I could tell as soon as I saw Mr. Snyder’s [owner of the Redskins] face through the peephole that this was not news that I wanted to hear.   I opened the door and Mr. Snyder was crying and before he could say anything I said, “Don’t tell me that.”

And Mr. Snyder replied, “He’s gone.”

I felt like this was all a bad dream and this couldn’t actually be happening.  There is so much that goes through your mind when you get news like that.  When you start to reflect on your last moments or last conversation with that person you feel like there is so much that you wish you had said, so much that you wish you could have done, should have done, etc.

The week before Sean died, my first son was born and our last conversation was me coming to tell him that I had a son and how blessed I felt to be a dad.  Sean also had a little girl and he felt the same way about being a parent.

You never think that’s going to be your last conversation with that person.  I still remember him walking out of the locker room when we were leaving to go to Tampa, and it was impossible to imagine returning home and Sean not being there.

Everything that happens in life happens for a reason.  The contracts and things you see now would have happened a long time ago because the highest paid player in the league would have been Sean Taylor and the best player in the league would have been Sean Taylor.  There really was no other competition. I’ve played with and seen a lot of talented guys, but hands down anyone who had seen or played against Sean Taylor knew whom the best player to step on that field was.

Talking about how the team coped and came together after Sean’s death:
The team went through so much so quick because it was a shock.  So many people elevated their game and we were able to carry one another.  We came back and had to play Buffalo that next week with heavy hearts and heavy eyes and started the game with ten men on the field in honor of Sean.  Everyone came together and we fought hard to stay in the game.  Ultimately we lost that first game back but we didn’t lose again after that because we all had this attitude of “I can give a little more.”

My pre-game ritual involved pumping myself up with Sean and Santana, and I would talk, compete and argue with Sean about which one of us would have the best knock-out blow.  That was how we would each get hyped for the game.  We were the leaders of that team so the energy that we had set the tone for the rest of the game.  The bond that started at the University of Miami carried over to the Redskins and everyone else was able to feed off our energy.

Football takes a lot of faith because there are so many ups and downs that come with this game.  When it’s bad, it’s not really as bad as it may seem and when it’s good, you’re not as good as you may think.  You have to find steady ground through both wins and losses to not get too down and not get too high.  Coach Gibbs always kept us on steady ground.

Talking about what he’s currently up to:
 Right now I am just training and hoping to return to the NFL but if not I am going to keep myself in shape so I look good on a TV set somewhere!  I think being away from ball for a year has given me the chance to sit back and find a new love and appreciation for the game.  I definitely miss it and feel like I have a lot left to give.


(gameplanforlife.com)

The long-delayed trial of four men in the slaying of Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor is set to begin April 16.

Attorneys for several of the defendants appeared in Miami-Dade state court briefly Thursday morning to request the move of a pre-trial hearing from April 5 to April 12, which Circuit Court Judge Dennis J. Murphy granted. Barring a delay that day, the trial would begin the following Monday.

Taylor was killed on November 27, 2007, at the peak of his career, when he was shot in the leg while confronting intruders in the South Miami home where he had been asleep with his girlfriend and their daughter.

Four men from Fort Myers, Fla. --  Eric Rivera, Jason Scott Mitchell, Charles K. Wardlow, and Timmy Lee Brown -- face first-degree murder and armed burglary charges in connection with Taylor’s death. Another defendant, Venjah Hunte, pleaded guilty and is expected to testify against the others.

None of the defendants appeared in court Thursday. Murphy has issued a gag order on people involved in the case that bars attorneys and Taylor’s family from commenting on the upcoming trial.

More than 40 subpoenas have been issued for the start of the trial.


(washingtonpost.com)

MIAMI — The man accused of fatally shooting Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor during a 2007 burglary has fired his lawyer one month before his murder trial.

Eric Rivera Jr. gave the Miami-Dade County, Fla., judge a letter Friday explaining his reasons for firing Quinton Pitts, an experienced defense lawyer. The judge ordered the letter sealed and said a new lawyer would be appointed. He warned the 21-year-old Rivera that his trial will still begin April 16.

Four men from the Fort Myers area are accused of killing Taylor during a robbery at the player’s Miami-Dade home. All have pleaded not guilty and face possible life sentences if convicted. They are being tried separately.

A fifth man previously pleaded guilty to murder and burglary and is likely to testify against the others.


(washingtonpost.com)

A burgundy football jersey with gold trim hangs in Richard Sharpstein’s law office on Brickell Avenue, one block from Miami’s waterfront. A black marker’s scrawl winds across the jersey’s No. 21: “Thank you for everything.” The wavy lines of an autograph sit below.

Sean Taylor.

While the sporting world counts down the hours until the start of Sunday’s Super Bowl, family and friends of the onetime Washington Redskins superstar face a much longer wait for justice to be done.

Four years, two months and five days have drifted past since intruders awakened Taylor at 1:40 a.m. in his four-bedroom Palmetto Bay, Fla., home. The intruders kicked in the door of the master bedroom. Jackie Garcia, Taylor’s girlfriend, clutched their 18-month-old daughter under the bed.

Taylor grabbed a machete. One intruder fired twice. A bullet pierced Taylor’s right thigh and femoral artery, then exited through a tiny hole and stopped in his lower left thigh. Twenty-seven hours later, the 24-year-old safety died.

The autopsy report later noted, among a dozen tattoos, two verses of Psalm 23 inked on Taylor’s left shoulder:

“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.”

Five young men were charged with first-degree murder, but their trials have been delayed continuously. Since the first one was scheduled for April of 2008, the trial has been postponed 14 times. Defense attorneys shuffled. A gag order from 11th Judicial Circuit Judge Dennis J. Murphy banned attorneys, law enforcement and others connected to the case from discussing it with the media.

The latest try is April 16. Eric Rivera, 17 years old during the murder, is scheduled for trial then. The trials of three other defendants — Timmy Lee Brown, Jason Scott Mitchell and Charles Wardlow — will follow. The fifth man, Venjah Hunte, accepted a plea bargain but attempted to back out. His sentencing is scheduled for April 5.

Reminders of a life
As legal gridlock continues, the lives of those close to Taylor are littered with reminders of the hole left by the bullet. They talk about Taylor as if he is still alive.

Each day, Mr. Sharpstein looks at the jersey. Taylor gave it to him in 2006 after the lawyer and longtime family friend helped get an aggravated assault charge dropped as part of a negotiated plea bargain. Mr. Sharpstein remembers Taylor’s habit of saying “Mr. and Mrs. Sharpstein” and a shyness that mixed with distaste for speaking about himself.

The stab of disbelief from a 5 a.m. phone call to Mr. Sharpstein from Pedro Taylor, Sean’s father, that his son had been shot lingers, too.
Pedro Taylor, the police chief in Florida City, Fla., didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment. Donna Junor, Sean’s mother, declined to comment.

Sometimes Mr. Sharpstein pulls out a photo of a smiling Taylor he keeps in a desk drawer. The photo and jersey remind him of life’s fragility and unpredictability. He thinks nothing can fill the hole Taylor’s death left in so many lives, and he thinks about the “lifelong torture” Pedro Taylor faces. Those thoughts often turn to Mr. Sharpstein’s family.

“Sometimes [Taylor] talks to me,” Mr. Sharpstein said, “and tells me it’s time to go home, to get out.”

The gag order prevents Mr. Sharpstein from speaking about the trial.

Years ago, Ralph Ortega asked Mr. Sharpstein to represent Taylor. Mr. Ortega, a mortgage broker, was an assistant football coach and mentor to Taylor at Gulliver Preparatory School.

“He was not quite like a son,” Mr. Ortega said, “but something close.”

Taylor and Mr. Ortega’s son, Buck, both started at Gulliver Preparatory midway through their sophomore years. They were about the same height and weight. Both were quiet. They loved fishing. A fast friendship developed.

The first sailfish Buck Ortega caught came with Taylor off Key Largo, Fla., when they were sophomores. A few days ago, Buck Ortega pulled out a photo of the 80-pound sailfish. Taylor smiled back at him from the photo.

“Look how little we were,” Buck Ortega told his wife, Emily.

He laughed.

‘Scary how good’

Today, Buck Ortega runs a chain of health clubs near Fayetteville, Ark., after stints with four NFL teams at tight end. He doesn’t follow the legal gymnastics in Miami much, but Taylor comes to mind often. Big hits or big returns in football games on television spur those memories.

“Watching him play was like artwork,” Buck Ortega said. “Sean had a one-upper for everything [on the field]. It was the truth. He was that good. It was scary how good he was.”

Buck Ortega tries not to think about the murder. But that day lurks, like a photo he can’t erase.

Each April 1, Buck Ortega calls Pedro Taylor for Sean’s birthday.

“I’m thinking about you,” Buck Ortega tells him.

Those thoughts are difficult for Ralph Ortega to escape. Every two weeks, he eats lunch at Walter’s Coffee Shop in Palmetto Bay. Taylor’s jersey and picture hang on the wall. So does the jersey of Derrick Thomas, the Kansas City Chiefs linebacker from Miami who died after a car accident in 2000.

Taylor’s old house sits six miles away, an 11-minute drive if traffic is right.

Visions of Taylor on the football field return first. Like his first spring game at Gulliver Preparatory. Ralph Ortega, an All-America linebacker at the University of Florida before playing six seasons in the NFL, doubted Taylor was the team’s best player but then experienced an epiphany.

After the game, Ralph Ortega pulled Taylor aside and told the youngster he could be special. Beyond high school special.

“There’s something with the way you move,” Ralph Ortega said.

Taylor’s face lit up.
Steve Howey was at that game. Then Gulliver Preparatory’s head coach, he moved across Florida to St. John Neumann Catholic High School in Naples as the school’s football coach and athletic director.

Every once in a while, Mr. Howey thinks of calling Taylor. Reality intercedes a second or two later. Taylor is gone. Mr. Howey finally had to delete Taylor’s number from his cellphone.

Each class of freshman football players, particularly the youngsters with uncanny size or wingspans, brings Taylor to mind. Maybe, Mr. Howey thinks, this one is the next Sean Taylor.

Whenever Mr. Howey visits a new town, he stops by sports memorabilia shops to see if they have items connected to Taylor. Mr. Howey has already hit every shop around Naples. Twenty-five dollars bought Taylor’s rookie card. Mr. Howey hasn’t discovered any of Taylor’s game-worn jerseys from the Redskins or the University of Miami yet. Anything Taylor is prized.

That’s who Mr. Howey thinks of when he drives east toward Miami. The five men charged in the murder allegedly drove the same way. Mr. Howey figures they have regrets, sitting in Miami-Dade County jail cells as the legal process creeps forward.

“They took a real special person from this world,” Mr. Howey said. “It hurts to think about his loss, dying the way he did. I love talking about him. I really loved the kid. I think the world of him.”

Mr. Howey’s memorabilia collection includes pictures from Taylor’s days at Gulliver Preparatory and the University of Miami. There’s the picture Taylor autographed after signing with the University of Miami that reads, “Good call, coach.” Another is an enlarged shot that ran in the Naples Daily News.

In a double-overtime game for Gulliver Preparatory against Immokalee, Mr. Howey decided to go for the two-point conversion and win. The ball, of course, went to Taylor. The picture shows Taylor diving toward the end zone, maybe five feet in the air, his arms and legs straight out, the football leading the way.

Taylor looks as if he’s flying.


(washingtontimes.com)

MIAMI -- A judge in Miami has set an April 16 trial date for the alleged shooter in the 2007 killing of Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor.

Four men accused in the slaying will be tried separately. The judge said Friday that the first to stand trial will be 21-year-old Eric Rivera Jr.
Trial dates for the others have not been set.

The men from the Fort Myers area are accused of fatally shooting Taylor during an attempted robbery at his home. All have pleaded not guilty and face potential life prison sentences if convicted.

A fifth man previously pleaded guilty to murder and burglary charges and is likely to testify against the others.

Taylor was an All-Pro with the Redskins who also starred at the University of Miami.


(miamiherald.com)

Four years ago today, Redskins safety Sean Taylor died after being shot by intruders who had invaded his South Florida home.

He was only 24.

“It flies by,” Redskins teammate Santana Moss told WUSA.  “It’s four years, but it just feels like yesterday.”

Safety LaRon Landry, a rookie in 2007, said he still thinks every day about the tandem they could have become.

“[Sean] was really coming into his own,” safety Reed Doughty said.  “We were talking in the [defensive back meeting] room the other day about how young and good he was.  Anybody who plays free safety for the Redskins is always going to be compared to him and I’m not sure many can compare.”

Not many can, in Washington or elsewhere.


(profootballtalk.com)

The four men accused in the 2007 slaying of Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor are scheduled to go on trial on Jan. 30 in Miami, according to an Associated Press report.

The four Fort Myers area men are accused of fatally shooting Taylor after they broke into his home. All four have pleaded not guilty.

If convicted, they could face life sentences.

A fifth suspect already has pleaded guilty to murder and burglary charges and is expected to testify against the others.

Click here to order Sean Taylor’s proCane Rookie Card.


(washingtonpost.com)

Safety O.J. Atogwe had worn No. 21 his entire life, he said. But joining the Redskins and hitting the practice field for the first time with his new teammates Friday, he knew wearing No. 21 wasn’t an option.

Out of respect for Sean Taylor, the popular Redskins safety who was killed in 2007, Atogwe will instead wear No. 20.

“The man who wore it here is a very honorable man, and it was a very tragic thing that happened to him,” Atogwe said on Friday. “And it was just something that I personally believed in. Even though the number isn’t officially retired, in my heart — I’m a fan of the game and I was a big fan of Sean Taylor — and already in my heart the number was retired. So it wasn’t even a question of what number I was going to take.”

After picking up the No. 20 practice jersey reserved for him, Atogwe said it took him a while to adjust to the landscape of his new home. Thursday when he arrived at Redskins Park, he couldn’t find the field. He played follow-the-leader through the facility, getting to know his teammates on the way to team meetings.

“In time all the logistics and things of that nature will clear up and this will feel like home,” Atogwe said. “The guys have welcomed me and I’m excited about that and I’m appreciative of that.I will get to know everybody I’m a pretty personable person, and hopefully they get to know me so we can come together and get this thing rolling.”

Click here to order Sean Taylor’s proCane Rookie Card.


(washingtonpost.com)

A few days after the Redskins’ Sean Taylor was killed in Miami, Florida, a spray-painted memorial mural, written in the team’s colors, appeared on the northbound wall of the Brookland Metro station where it remains today, untouched. The mural, painted in burgundy, gold, and white, is seen by tens of thousands of Red Line riders going in and out of the city every day.

Taylor, 24, was in his fourth year with the Redskins. In the twelfth week of the 2007 season he had 5 interceptions — third in the league, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. His reputation as one of the hardest hitting players in the league and his all-out style of play had endeared him to fans.

News of his death during a home invasion on November 27, 2007 quickly spread across the region, leaving his teammates and fans in a state of disbelief and grief. While the Redskins organization honored Taylor’s memory on the field, an established DC graffiti artist took to the red line in a public display of deference. 

“The Red Line has been a hot spot since the mid-80’s, but became the spot in the early 90’s,” according to Roger Gastman, a Bethesda native and author of Free Agents: A History of DC Graffiti and the forthcoming The History of American Graffiti. “If you wanted to be someone in the DC graffiti scene, you had to hit the Red Line.”

“The Brookland station, you can walk right up to it. It is a very good location, if you can pull it off,” says Gastman.

“The best writers interact with their environment,” asserts Gastman, citing graffiti as the fastest growing art movement of the past forty years.
Beginning his graffiti career with the tag of “CERT” in 1992 at the age of 14, the well-known writer of the Sean Taylor mural declined an interview request for this article.

“The Red Line was CERT’s backyard. He basically lived there and owned it. CERT could disappear, but, to this day he holds enough respect that his spots will remain untouched for years to come,” reads CERT’s profile in Free Agents that describes his graffiti as “hardcore and illegal” and “always in highly visible spots.”

“Graffiti to me is my childhood, my teen years. That’s what I was about 100 percent. But I’m still representing. Don’t count me out. Don’t forget me. I can come back at any moment and in a month I’ll take king of the Red Line again,” contends CERT in the 2001 book.

“Whatever his reasons for slowing down, CERT is a true D.C. king. It’s time for him to sit back and let the mark he left on the city soak in. And like he said, don’t count him out. With a closet full of paint and heart that’s true to the game, CERT will be back,” Gastman foretold in the conclusion of CERT’s profile.

The mural has remained untouched since its appearance more than 3 years ago.  Gastman says there is a code among writers that is being followed. 

“Brookland station can be considered a museum for DC graffiti, because of the pieces that have endured over the years,” says Saaret Yoseph, a graduate student at Georgetown University. “Brookland is unique in that the art is eye level. The graffiti is looking right at you as you wait for your train.”

Yoseph is directing, “The Red Line D.C Project,” a documentary exploring the “communal experience” of graffiti on the Red Line as a public art space. It will be released later this year.  



Rider Reactions

“What struck me about that one was here was a memorial to someone we actually knew–or knew of. So much graffiti is inscrutable. Who are the people named there? What’s the purpose of it? But this was one we could grasp immediately,” said John Kelly, a writer for The Washington Post and Red Line rider since 1983. “And then a few years later, just across the platform was another one that fell into that category: some memorial paint for Michael Jackson.”

On a recent morning at the Brookland Station, riders’ reactions to the graffiti suggested a sense of pride in the station’s distinction as the home of the Sean Taylor mural.

“If they cleaned it up we would be really hurt behind that one,” said Milford Obendorf, a Brookland resident waiting with his wife on the northbound train to Silver Spring.

“It’s been here since he passed away. People come here to look at it,” said Marquette Obendorf.

“It’s real creative,” said LaWanda Swain, a custodian with Metro for 6 years. “He played here so they have respect for him.”

“It spices things up. If they cleaned it up then you’d be staring at a wall for 15 minutes,” said Mike Young, 20, a cell phone sales rep downtown. “People remember Sean Taylor because he shouldn’t have died. He hit the hardest like when he cracked yungin’ in the Pro Bowl.”

Numerous videos on YouTube have compiled Taylor’s highlights as a Redskin, including a tackle of punter Brian Moorman in the Pro Bowl that lifted Moorman off his feet to a point where he was parallel to the field.

However, some riders expressed frustration with the station’s illegal art.

“It grows and grows until they clean it up,” said Joe, an older man in a white dress shirt, a Brookland resident for more than two decades. “The kids that do it are talented, but they can put their talents to better use.”

As a regular rider of the red line for more than a decade, I can remember the walls at Brookland being cleaned, “buffed” in the language of graffiti, about five years ago.

“The graffiti is on CSX property, not Metro property. Typically, when we become aware of graffiti, our goal is to remove it within 24 hours,” said Angela Gates, a Media Relations officer with Metro.

CSX did not respond to email and phone call requests for comment.

“There have been no graffiti-related arrests or citations in the last year at Brookland-CUA,” said Gates who emphasized that the property is outside of Metro’s jurisdiction.

With no apparent plans to clean the walls and a lack of enforcement around graffiti, the Sean Taylor mural will continue to be a distinctive cultural landmark for the Brookland Metro station.

Click here to order Sean Taylor’s proCane Rookie Card.


(thewashingtonsyndicate.com)

Sean Taylor
Sean Taylor of the Washington Redskins was shot in his home when he was just 24 years old. The highly-rated safety in the NFL was the victim of a forced entry into his home and a bullet pierced an artery in his leg in November of 2007.

Four people were arrested in connection to the death of Taylor. Investigators say they were intent on burglarizing Taylor's home but were surprised when he was home in Miami instead of with the team. Taylor was leading the league in interceptions at the time of his death.

To see the rest click here.


(yahoosports.com)

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk had Bills punter Brian Moorman on his PFT Live podcast show thing today, mainly because Moorman is doing good deeds to help the folks in Joplin, Missouri. But the conversation turned -- as I imagine conversations with Moorman often do -- to the ENORMOUS hit that Redskins safety Sean Taylor put on Moorman on a fake punt in the 2007 Pro Bowl.

(You can watch that hit above, and I recommend it. It's quite possibly the greatest thing ever to happen in a Pro Bowl in the game's sixty year history.)

Seeing that hit, It would be easy to believe that Moorman has no recollection of it whatsoever, but it turns out that his memories of the play are pretty sharp -- and pretty entertaining. First, though, here's Moorman on the legacy of the hit:

That definitely has given me an extended fifteen seconds of fame, because I think that every year a rookie comes in and says, 'Hey, you're The Guy!' It's kind of a funny thing for me, and obviously you can still find it on YouTube, so people still see it. I get somebody, probably five or ten people a year that say something to me out in public or whatever. So I think that's gonna stick with me a while.

That is what it is. It was a good experience and I'm just glad I got up 'cause it was the biggest shot I ever took in my football career.

Florio follows up by talking about what an enormous hit it was -- "full postseason speed," he says -- and asks Moorman what it felt like to get drilled like that.

Moorman:

I told our Reebok rep that it was a perfect commercial for their shoes, because they saw the bottom of my shoes immediately. I didn't know what was -- how that was gonna happen. But I remember a flash of John Lynch coming and making a block, I believe on Derrick Brooks -- I've actually got a picture of that [Ed. Note: It's probably the AP Photo to the right.]-- and I remember that flash, and I thought, 'Oh, I think I can get this,' so I cut up behind him and that was the last thing I remembered.

Next thing you know, I was down there and [I knew] I've gotta pop up quick. I didn't wanna give him any satisfaction in the fact that he took me out like that. So ... luckily he caught me -- it was a clean hit; he caught me kind of in the lower part of the shoulder, not too much in the head, and I was able to get up from it. But I was definitely lucky; he did put a pretty good lick on me.

I went out and congratulated him on the hit just so he knew I was up. I just wanted to make sure he knew that I wasn't still laying there, and I just said, 'Hey, nice hit. Well done.' He actually even ripped a hole in my jersey, so I've got that thing framed up and a picture beside it, so I've got something to remember it by.

I imagine Moorman will be holding onto that Pro Bowl jersey for awhile, but you can bid on one of his autographed, game-worn jerseys with all proceeds going to Red Cross Joplin Relief. And here's the relevant section of PFT Live, if you're the sort of person who'd rather watch the interview than read my transcription.

(redskins.com)