Detroit Tiger's Cabrera's Threats Extend Beyond Arresting Officers
As the details from Miguel Cabrera's DUI arrest become available, it is more and more evident that the Tiger's first basement will be lucky if he gets away with a slap on the wrist. Originally, reports that Cabrera took a swig from his bottle of alcohol while taking a sobriety test in front of officers was enough to top the headlines. Unfortunately for Cabrera, his drunken night just keeps getting worse.
According to reports, Cabrera had an incident earlier that evening at a local steak house. The manager of the steakhouse, Fletcher Nail, submitted a sworn statement to police stating he attempted to escort Cabrera from the closed restaurant and was then threatened. In the statement, Nail claims Cabrera not only threatened to kill him, but also informed the entire restaurant that he would "..... kill all of you and blow this place up."
Cabrera is lucky no one recognized him. Aside from possibly provoking the superstar into doing even more, it is surprising no one caught Cabrera (on a cell phone or camera) in the act of threatening the restaurant to help build the case against him. The police cruiser video was enough footage to make Cabrera's defense an uphill battle.
Now that it's public knowledge Cabrera is the culprit, you may start seeing some cases against Cabrera coming out of the wood-works. It will be a stretch, but there is potential for civil suits from restaurant patrons claiming intentional infliction of emotional distress against the ideal, millionaire, target-defendant Cabrera. Incidents like these are the exact type that players associations and league executives stress avoiding every year in spring training, and this isn't Cabrera's first incident. Aside from all the legal repercussions Cabrera may face, he is lucky his threats didn't come true, and he didn't kill himself or anyone else when he got behind the wheel.
Just to top all of that, Cabrera also told officers to shoot him. It is beyond clear that Cabrera's first stint in rehab was not enough and he needs additional help. And even though it may be the right thing to do on the part of the Tiger's by supporting Cabrera, a lack of suspension by either the team or the league leaves you scratching your head.
My name is Christopher Fusco. I am the managing partner of Callahan & Fusco, LLC with offices in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.
