Lawrence Taylor, the Hall of Fame football player, Broward resident and avid golfer, had a good morning Thursday. He walked out of a Broward courthouse with no jail time and no significant fine on sex offender charges, and, presumably, he made his tee time that was scheduled for an hour after his hearing.
The 63-year-old Taylor ended up having one of his two charges reduced to a misdemeanor and the other charge dropped, and walked out of the courthouse a free man.
“Not only didn’t he get [no] jail time,” Taylor’s attorney, Mark Eiglarsh said, “but no probation, no house arrest, no nothing.
“He’s simply paying court costs and the cost of prosecution and he’s done with this case, so it was an offer he couldn’t refuse.”
Taylor, asked what his next move would be, didn’t hide his plans.
“Man, I’ve got a tee time in one hour,” he said. “I’m going to the golf course. Simple.”
Taylor was arrested Dec. 16 for not reporting his address change to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and the Broward Sheriff’s Office. He was facing two felony charges that carried a maximum of 10 years in prison.
Taylor’s status as a sex offender, and requirement to report an address change, is rooted in a plea agreement from a 2010 episode in which he had sex with a 16-year-old who Taylor said claimed to be 19-year-old. He pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors — sexual misconduct and sex with an underage prostitute — and got six years’ probation.
The Broward County charges were filed because Taylor moved out of his house and into a hotel and didn’t report an address change.
“He was instructed by a law enforcement officer because he was having friction with his soon-to-be ex-wife to get out of the house,” Eiglarsh said. “So he spent some time in a hotel and because of that time in the hotel, and he didn’t officially change his address, they said you violated the law.”
Taylor redefined the linebacker position in the NFL with his ability to rush the passer and disrupt offenses. He was the No. 2 pick in the 1981 NFL Draft by the New York Giants after his standout college career at North Carolina. Taylor was a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, including his rookie season, as well as NFL MVP, a two-time Super Bowl champion (Super Bowls XXI and XXV), and an eight-time first-team All Pro, two-time second-team All Pro and 10-time Pro Bowl selection.
In 2009, he competed on the highly-popular TV show “Dancing With The Stars.”
Taylor’s popularity is seemingly always evident.
In the courtroom an attorney who was working a different case walked over and shook Taylor’s hand. After the hearing many people could be overheard whispering in courthouse hallways that they saw Taylor.
Of course, Taylor is a familiar face in a courtroom, something he jokingly referenced after his hearing.
He’s had Florida incidents that involved cocaine, driving under the influence, and a hit-and-run.
He’s also had other issues such as bankruptcy, drug rehabilitation and his wife being arrested in 2016 for domestic violence after allegedly throwing an object that hit Taylor in the head.
Regardless, his issues with this case regarding a failure to report an address change are over.
“The law in this area is murky at best for people with law degrees,” Eiglarsh said. “Lawrence had no idea that he was violating the law when he did what he did, and nevertheless found himself looking at 10 years in prison. Fortunately he walks away with mere court costs and a misdemeanor.”
Chris Perkins can be reached at .
