By Anthony Rifilato
"You chose to put your life in a fishbowl," Edwards said he tells his players. "It's part of the deal."
Jets star John Abraham is finding out about life in the fishbowl, having been charged with driving while intoxicated in Baldwin last week.
Abraham, 25, was arrested shortly after 10 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 1, after he slammed his 2003 Hummer sport utility vehicle into a fire hydrant and light pole on Grand Avenue in front of the Fairview Shopping Center.
Abraham, who lives in Wantagh during the season, was traveling north on Grand Avenue with two passengers, a 31-year-old man and a 22-year-old woman, police said.
Witnesses said they heard a loud thud and a screeching sound before Abraham hit the light pole. They said water gushed from the hydrant and flooded the nearby KFC construction site. The Hummer, which they described as black or dark blue, knocked the hydrant off its base and dragged it underneath. But the Hummer was so large, they said, that it sustained almost no damage.
"[The accident] wasn't that bad," said Cristian Ene, an employee at the nearby Blimpie. "I asked them if they were OK, and they said it wasn't a problem."
Although no one was injured, officers who responded smelled alcohol on Abraham's breath and administered a field sobriety test at the scene. He failed it, registering a blood alcohol level of 0.26 percent on a portable Breathalyzer, more than three times the state's legal limit of 0.08, said Rick Hinshaw, a spokesman for the District Attorney's office.
Although Abraham eventually admitted to police that he had been drinking Hennessy and Coke earlier that night, he refused a second Breathalyzer test and was held overnight at the First Precinct in Hempstead.
"The one [Breathalyzer] that is admissible in court, he refused," Hinshaw said. Because he refused, his license was revoked and his Hummer was impounded.
Nassau County Police and Hinshaw said they weren't sure what Abraham was doing in Baldwin, though some sources say that he may have spent time in Gentlemen's Quarters, a Grand Avenue strip club. The team had a bye week, with no game on Sunday.
Abraham's attorney, Brian Davis, did not return calls for comment.
On Oct. 2, Abraham pleaded not guilty at his arraignment and was released on his own recognizance. If convicted, he could be sentenced to a year in jail, but because it is Abraham's first offense, there's a possibility that he could plead guilty to a lesser charge of driving while impaired.
Explaining that the NFL has strict policies against such conduct and that as a professional athlete, Abraham has to face the consequences, Edwards said Abraham may be placed in a substance-abuse program, where he is likely to receive alcohol counseling and random testing. He could also be fined $20,000.
Abraham, who was besieged by the news media last week at the court, said that he was embarrassed by the incident and that he will learn from his mistake. "I apologize to my family, teammates, the coaching staff and the entire New York Jets organization," he said in a statement.
Abraham, a first-round draft pick in 2000, has been the Jets' most impressive defensive lineman. In 2001, he had 13 sacks in 82 tackles, helping to lead the Jets to the playoffs. Last year, he had 10 sacks among 82 tackles, and the team won the AFC East division title.
But the Jets have been struggling this season and are 0-4, and Abraham's arrest added to the cloud over the team.
Saying at a news conference last week that no one is perfect and that people make mistakes, Edwards added that despite Abraham's poor judgment, Edwards and the team are rallying behind their star, and Abraham will be at practice this week.
"We're going to do whatever we can to help John," Edwards said. "Not as a football player, but as a man."
Witnesses and those who heard about the accident were surprised that it involved an NFL star. One woman who saw the incident, Melissa Belmontes, a stylist at La Diva Unisex Salon, said there were lots of police and fire trucks, and that the driver of the vehicle, Abraham, was wearing a large chain and a white hat.
"I just heard the noise and saw the light pole shake," Belmontes said. "Everybody came out and [the driver] seemed all right. I was surprised that it was a football player."
One Jets fan and Baldwin resident who works at La Diva, Dorian Brown, 30, speculated that Abraham was probably just unwinding during the off week. "It was probably just R and R," Brown said, adding, "I think this might give the team a jolt."
Though Edwards would not comment on whether Abraham would play against Buffalo on Oct. 12, he said that he gave Abraham the day off on Friday. Saying that the accident and his subsequent arrest were too much for Abraham to bear emotionally, Edwards sent him home to visit his mother in South Carolina.
"He's humbled and regrets the situation," Edwards said. "When you're an athlete, you get this type of attention."
