NFL Hall of Famer Bruce Smith Pleads Guilty to DUI

By Topher

National Football League Hall of Fame defensive end Bruce Smith recently pleaded guilty to drunk driving in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

The Associated Press reports that Smith cited a desire to be a responsible asset to the community in his decision to plead guilty.

As a part of the guilty plea, Smith agreed to pay a $1,000 fine and was given a 90-day suspended sentence. In exchange for the plea, prosecutors dropped charges of speeding and refusing to take a breathalyzer test. Smith will also be required to take an alcohol safety program, and his driving privileges will be restricted.

Under the agreement, Smith can only drive when going to work, medical visits, visits with his mother, to the alcohol class and when he takes his children to school and to the doctor.

Smith was convicted of the DUI charge in General District court in July, and was allowed an appeal and a retrial. Smith made the plea agreement before going to retrial, which was scheduled to occur in the near future.

Smith said in a statement to reporters that the risk in the case would not be worth the reward, and that he thought he had only a 50 percent chance of getting out of the DUI charge. Even then, he would still have to negotiate the additional charges. As it is, he was able to come to a plea agreement that would allow him to, in his words, “take ownership of that evening.”

Smith also said that he would be hiring a former state trooper to accompany him to events at which he might be consuming alcohol. Of the night in question, Smith said that he spent the evening with friends, and that he had consumed some wine with dinner.

This is Smith’s third arrest for DUI. In 1997, a DUI conviction was later dismissed, and in 2003 he was acquitted of any charges.

As a member of the Buffalo Bills and the Washington Redskins, Smith amassed 200 sacks, which puts him at the top of the all-time list. He retired from the sport in 2003 and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2009.