US Tyson - Former heavyweight champ sentenced to 1 day in jail, probation
NAME: US TYSON 20071119Ix
TAPE: EF07/1395
IN_TIME: 10:26:03:17
DURATION: 00:02:11:02
SOURCES: AP TELEVISION
DATELINE: Mesa, Arizona - 19 Nov 2007
RESTRICTIONS:
SHOTLIST:
1. Former US heavyweight champion boxer Mike Tyson walking into courtroom
2. Tyson in front of judge
3. SOUNDBITE: (English) Helene Abram, Superior Court Judge:
"There has been a determination of guilt based on your pleas of guilty to count one possesion or use of narcotic drugs, a class four felony and count three driving or actual physical control while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs, a class one misdemeanour."
4. Tyson looking at the prosecutor
5. Back of Tyson's head
6. SOUNDBITE: (English) Shane Krauser, Prosecutor;
"Mr Tyson in talking with the adult probation office indicated that he should be given another chance, he should be placed on probation with no jail. Judge, by my calculation, this would be a fourth or fifth chance at a minimum."
7. Defence attorney David Chesnoff, Tyson's attorney and Tyson facing judge
8. SOUNDBITE: (English) David Chesnoff, Tyson's attorney:
"When Mike was arrested, he didn't say he's a recreational drinker, he didn't say that the drugs are recreational, he told the police he was an addict."
9. Wide of court
10. SOUNDBITE: (English) Mike Tyson, former US heavyweight champion boxer:
"I acknowledge that I take full responsibility for my actions and that I'm guilty and I just want to deal with the consequences."
11. Tyson facing judge
12. SOUNDBITE: (English) Helene Abram, Superior Court Judge:
"I'm most impressed with the fact that you got help almost immediately after your arrest, beginning this process with self-reflection can be very painful as I think you know. You learned to deal with and address your addiction and your self-destructive behaviours, you also assisted others with their treatment and became a role model to them and you demonstrated leadership by voluntarily speaking to numerous groups of people about your struggles."
13. Wide of Tyson in court
STORYLINE:
Former US heavyweight champion boxer Mike Tyson was sentenced on Monday to 24 hours in jail and three years probation for cocaine possession and driving under the influence.
The former heavyweight champion had earlier pleaded guilty in September to a single felony count of cocaine possession and a misdemeanour of driving under the influence (DUI).
"I acknowledge that I take full responsibility for my actions that I'm guilty and I just want to deal with the consequences." Tyson said to Superior Court Judge Helene Abrams.
Tyson, who will begin serving his jail time on Tuesday morning, left the courthouse without speaking to reporters.
Tyson had faced a possible maximum sentence of four years and three months in prison.
Prosecutor Shane Krauser had recommended one year in prison on Monday, saying that Tyson was a multiple offender who previously had been convicted of a violent crime and that only now had he sought treatment for his drug addiction.
"Judge, by my calculations, this is his fourth or fifth chance," Krauser said.
The latest charges stemmed from a traffic stop in Scottsdale on December 29 after the boxer had spent the evening at Scottsdale's Pussycat Lounge and was seen driving erratically.
An officer said he saw Tyson wiping a white substance off the dashboard of his black BMW, and that his speech was slurred.
Authorities said they found bags of cocaine in Tyson's pocket and in his car.
Tyson told officers later that he used cocaine "whenever I can get my hands on it," and that he preferred to smoke it in Marlboro cigarettes with the tobacco pulled out, according to court documents.
He also told police that he had used marijuana that day and was taking the antidepressant Zoloft, the documents state.
Since his arrest, Tyson checked himself into an inpatient treatment programme for what his lawyer called "various addictions."
Tyson's attorney David Chesnoff said his client had admitted the offence to police officers.
"When Mike was arrested, he didn't say he's a recreational drinker, he didn't say that the drugs are recreational, he told the police he was an addict."
Abrams said that she was impressed that Tyson was seeking therapy for his drug addiction and his subsequent assistance to other addicts .
"You assisted others with their treatment and became a role model to them and you demonstrated leadership by voluntarily speaking to numerous groups of people about your struggles," Abrams said.
In addition to probation, Tyson will also have to pay a fine and serve 360 hours of community service, including at least 20 hours per month.
In 1986, Tyson became the youngest heavyweight champion in history when, at 20, he knocked out Trevor Berbick.
He lost his title four years later when he was knocked out by James "Buster" Douglas.
By 1997, Tyson's career hit a low point when he bit Evander Holyfield's ear during a fight.
Tyson, 41, had recently been trying to revive his career with a series of boxing exhibitions.