ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, April 4, 1996 TAG: 9604040097
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: From Associated Press reports
A judge ruled Wednesday that Northwestern University football star Darnell Autry can take an unpaid movie part in Italy during the summer over the objections of the NCAA.
Cook County (Ill.) Circuit Judge Thomas P. Durkin sided with the sophomore running back and theater student, who has been offered an unpaid part in two scenes of a supernatural thriller called ``The 18th Angel.''
NCAA officials were considering an appeal late Wednesday afternoon, and one of Autry's lawyers, Peter Rush, said there still could be risks if the player accepts the role.
``I will advise my client of risks and rewards, and Darnell Autry will have to make that decision,'' Rush said in a telephone interview.
NCAA rules bar athletes from appearing in commercial films, and the regulatory organization had told Autry his movie role would cost him his final two years of eligibility.
``We want to enforce the rules,'' said Bedell Tippins, a lawyer representing the NCAA. ``There are 11,000 or 12,000 member schools who like to see some consistency in the application of the rules and not a carved out, isolated exception of the rules.''
Northwestern has tried since January to persuade the NCAA to let Autry act in the movie, for which he would be paid only travel and expenses.
On Tuesday, Autry, 19, sued the NCAA, pressing for a decision before Saturday's deadline to accept the role.
``We want Darnell to do what every other student can do - pursue his major,'' said Mike Abernathy, another attorney for Autry.
Autry rushed for 100 yards or more in every game last season, and led perennial Big Ten Conference doormat Northwestern to a 10-1 season and a berth in the Rose Bowl.
In other football news:
nTodd McNair of the NFL's Houston Oilers has been charged with mistreating 22 pit bulls seized at his property, where authorities in East Greenwich Township, N.J., say the animals were being trained for dogfights.
McNair, 30, was arrested Tuesday on cruelty-to-animals charges and released from the Gloucester County Jail in Woodbury after posting $10,000 bail.
The arrest followed an investigation prompted by the local Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, township police Lt. Scott Goess said. The dogs were chained at a vacant property owned by the running back, he said.
Neighbors reported hearing dogs barking and crying and seeing puppies and adult dogs in cages filled with dog feces. Goess said all the animals were in poor condition and one dog had a broken leg.
``It was the worst case of cruelty to animals I've ever seen,'' Goess said. ``It was disgraceful.''
The most serious charge against McNair is a criminal complaint for possessing pit bulls for the purpose of fighting, Goess said. If convicted, he could face a $7,500 fine and three to five years in prison, he said.
nLeRoy Irvin, a former player with the Los Angeles Rams, was sentenced to 60 days in jail and three years probation in Los Angeles for allegedly battering his live-in girlfriend.
Deputy City Attorney Kenneth Tso said Irvin, 38, issued a no-contest plea to the charge of spousal battery before Van Nuys Municipal Court Judge Alan Ellis. The judge also ordered Irvin to complete a year of domestic violence counseling and stay away from the woman.
Police said the victim, 40, whose identity was not made public, told officers she had been living with Irvin for six months before a weekend argument at their apartment in the Reseda area of Los Angeles.
Irvin played cornerback and returned kicks for the Rams from 1980-89, and was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1985-86.
nIndianapolis Colts linebacker Quentin Coryatt was released from custody in Indianapolis after posting a $2,500 bond in connection with a weapons charge.
Coryatt, accused of pointing a handgun at a motorist during a dispute over traffic in a highway construction zone, surrendered at 7:29 a.m. Wednesday, said Beverly Phillips, a spokeswoman with the Marion County prosecutor's office.
An initial hearing was scheduled for 8:30 a.m. April 11 in Marion County Municipal Court, she said.
Coryatt was charged Friday with a Class D felony charge of pointing a firearm. He allegedly pointed the gun at a motorist who prevented him from passing traffic in a construction zone on Interstate 465 in March.
If convicted, Coryatt could face six months to three years in prison, Phillips said.
Fuhr's streak in goal ends with injury
St.Louis Blues goaltender Grant Fuhr, hobbled by a strained right knee, did not make the trip to Colorado for Wednesday night's game with the Avalanche, ending his NHL-record streak at 76 consecutive starts.
Fuhr had started every game this season for the Blues, but was injured in the second period of Sunday's 8-1 loss to Detroit. The previous NHL record for consecutive starts by a goalie in a single season was 70, by Boston's Eddie Johnston in 1963-64. Fuhr also broke his own NHL record for games played by a goalie in a season. He had set the record of 75 in 1987-88 with Edmonton.
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