OK, I remember this cluster-chuck. The league gave the refs first class plane tickets to travel to games. The refs traded them in for cheaper tickets, and pocketed the difference. Quite a few of the refs never declared the extra income on their taxes. Most tax evasion cases are handled as *civil* matters, not *criminal*. In this case, the IRS was out to make an example of a high profile target. At first, the NBA made noises about taking tough action against any ref involved. Then the refs spilled the beans - the NBA had expressly given its' blessing to the practice! That didn't deter the IRS, but it left the NBA exposed to a lawsuit if it actually fired the refs. Simply put, the refs got their jobs back in exchange for Stern not winding up in a witness box. Oh, and I do mean "refs"...plural. Mauer was not alone. There are 10 or 12 guys working games that the IRS considers "felons". Take that FWIW.
Regardless, Ken Mauer is an NBA referee with a felony on his record. This catches my attention after the Donaghy claims that he wasn't the only one involved in fixing games. I'm sure refs can have a bad game, but not like last night. It was either a grudge against Portland, or worse, but it was fucked up to the point that people were kicked out of their seats.
That is Heath Franklin on the Ronnie Johns Half Hour, performing a parody of Eric Bana in the movie Chopper; which was based on the real "Chopper" Read, an Australian standover man. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heath_Franklin [video=youtube;unkIVvjZc9Y]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unkIVvjZc9Y[/video] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chopper_(film) [video=youtube;pY-Ho_0939Y]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pY-Ho_0939Y[/video] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chopper_Read [video=youtube;mG90K9Oi4OM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mG90K9Oi4OM[/video]
Thanks, kind of, but now I have to ask, what's a standover man? It's probably Australian slang. In the Reagan era the U.S. greatly increased prison terms, so almost every crime now is a felony. You never hear about misdemeanors anymore. So calling someone a felon has lost its power. "Felony" just means he was convicted of anything, not something big.
A convicted felon is convicted by either a jury or a judge, depending on the court arrangements. A felon doesn't have to be necessarily convicted; rather, they can plead into a lesser felony and admit guilt. Let me know if I can be of any further assistance.
And because of this fiasco it is extremely likely that Mauer HATES Stern and the New York office of the NBA. Those guys tried to hang him and his cohorts out to dry. As it was, Mauer and the other dudes lost a bunch of money and had their name dragged through the mud. At what point does Mauer think, "how do I get my money back?". Now they have a strained marraige of convenience. Maybe Mauer can get past this 100%. Somehow I doubt that Mauer put the integrity of the officiating and the best interests of the league ahead of his interests at this point. Why should he? Mauer first. Everybody else - get in line.
BGrantFan--so I can avoid being a convicted felon if I plea bargain guilty to a lesser felony and get convicted of that? So then I'm neither a felon nor a convicted felon, I'm just a convicted lesser felon? Dub--Thanks, kind of, again. I figure education shouldn't end with college, it should be a lifelong pursuit, so I clicked on the next definition after standover man. http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Standing Pooper Masbee--Someone earlier posted, the reffing wasn't biased, because why would Mauer help the Mavs, when his boss Stern hates Cuban? Your theory reconciles the apparent contradiction. Mauer hates Stern too, so Mauer and Cuban having a common enemy makes them allies.
How are you going to be convicted by a jury if you plead guilty to a lesser felony? You're still a felon, either way. It's more about sentencing, but I realize you're just being obtuse, so carry on ... I'll keep up my end for the next 30 minutes or so.
Wow, this is the first time anyone's ever sworn to put up with me for 30 minutes! I don't think that Las Vegas wedding chapel made her promise anything near 30 minutes. All that's left of that affair is my souvenir pencil monogrammed with their ad. So, to be convicted of a crime, it has to be a jury trial? If you plead guilty without a jury, you're not convicted? So you become an unconvicted convict? So on a job application, you truthfully answer "no" to, "Have you ever been convicted of a crime? Explain. This will not necessarily disqualify you, really it won't."
I think people are a little confused. Pleading guilty to a felony makes you a convicted felon. What you may be thinking of, is a situation where the crime is officially dropped to a misdemeanor in exchange for a guilty plea.
I was using semantics, just as you were in your smart-ass question. It's a non-issue. A felon is a felon, except in the post-Reagan days, in which a felon is really just a small-time crook, and one is a lesser felon if they cheat on their taxes, plead down their crime, or officiate NBA basketball games. I've learned a lot in this thread. Most of it has nothing to do with the thread, but I consider that a bonus.
Grouch--Nope, he's not confusing felony with misdemeanor. Although as I say, there aren't any misdemeanors anymore. Everything qualifies as a felony because the sentences got increased so much. Grant--I was thinking the same. I learned a lot of useful vocabulary from the Urban Dictionary. A little education goes a long way toward earning you a good living.
I wasn't sure of that but early in the first quarter I was reminded of that earlier game. I also got the distinct impression that the more upset the fans got, the more Mauer purposely stuck it to them. To find out now he reffed the earlier game completes the circle. If he isn't taken to the wood shed about his obvious vendetta -- well -- it just confirms what I've known for years about Stern's NBA.
Is Kenny Mauer the guy Rice used to refer to as the Fonz? If so Rice has indicated that this guy has sucked for about 10-15 years. I now see why.
