Florida Sentinel Bulletin

BRADENTON, FL — Former Alabama cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick has been arrested on a marijuana possession charge.

An arrest report on the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office website says Kirkpatrick was arrested at 12:48 a.m. Tuesday and charged with possessing less than 20 grams of marijuana. He was released on $120 bond.

Kirkpatrick is regarded as a potential top 10 NFL draft pick. The second-team All-American announced last week he was skipping his senior season with the national champions to enter the draft.

One-time NBA star Dikembe Mutombo has made a worldwide name for himself sponsoring humanitarian projects and noble causes in his native Africa, so it was only natural that two State Department officials would meet with him in November 2010 as part of his effort to bring more attention to the bloody trade in conflict minerals that has bedeviled his homeland, the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Less than two weeks later, according to a U.N. report, Mutombo was in New York on a more personal cause — trying to interest a Houston oil executive in a $10 million deal to buy 1,045 pounds of gold from the mines of eastern Congo, the heart of the conflict mineral trade.

If Mutombo had reservations about the apparent contradiction between word and deed, he did not show it. He eagerly explained how he and his family had 4 tons of Congolese gold just waiting for a buyer.

CINCINNATI, OH — Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Adam “Pacman’‘ Jones pleaded guilty Wednesday to a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct.

Jones entered the plea in Hamilton County Municipal Court just as his non-jury trial was scheduled to begin. A second misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest was dismissed in a plea agreement with prosecutors.

Judge Brad Greenberg ordered Jones to serve a year of probation, complete 50 hours of community service and pay a $250 fine plus court costs. Jones could have received a maximum jail sentence of 30 days.

Jones, 28, was accused in court documents of being disorderly, shouting profanities and trying to pull away as officers arrested him at a downtown bar in July.

Christopher Moorhouse, a Detroit Red Wings fan plead guilty to engaging in a prohibited activity and was fined $200 for throwing a banana at an African American hockey player during a game in London, Ontario.

In a pre-season game between the Detroit Red Wings and the Philadelphia Flyers, Moorhouse threw a banana at Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds, while Simmonds was trying to score.

Moorhouse, who was charged with engaging in a prohibited activity, could have been hit with a more serious offense or even a hate crime.

NEW YORK— Barry Larkin was elected to baseball’s Hall of Fame on Monday with plenty of room to spare.
The former Cincinnati Reds shortstop was chosen on 495 of 573 ballots (86 percent) in voting announced by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

Larkin was on the ballot for the third time after falling 75 votes short last year.

He will be inducted July 22 in Cooperstown along with the late Ron Santo, elected last month by the Veterans Committee. “I am so humbled by the experience and so excited about being the newest member of the Hall of Fame,” Larkin said on a conference call.

NEW ORLEANS — The Alabama defense took no chances in the rematch.

When Jordan Jefferson dropped back to pass, he was swept under by a tide of crimson. When the LSU quarterback took off running, he must’ve felt like Alabama had a few extra players on the field.

Courtney Upshaw, Dont’a Hightower and Co. sure made it seem that way.

With a smothering display of old-school football, the No. 2 Crimson Tide blew out the top-ranked Tigers 21-0 in the BCS championship game Monday night.
Coach Nick Saban’s Tide also moved into the top spot in the final Associated Press poll for the eighth time, tying Notre Dame for the most of any team in college football.

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward has two years and $4 million left on his contract, but word came Monday that his teammates were thinking that the 35-year-old, four-time Pro Bowler was ready to hang up his cleats.

By day’s end on Monday, though, Ward had posted on his Facebook page that he wasn’t going to end his career with the Steelers’ disappointing loss to the Denver Broncos in the first round of the playoffs. The former “Dancing with the Stars” champ will be back next year.

Coaches benched Steelers safety Ryan Clark this week due to fear of the complications that he faced last time he played in Denver, which included life-threatening illness.

Four years ago, the combination of Clark’s sickle cell trait and Denver’s high altitude caused organ damage, and surgeons had to remove his spleen and gallbladder.

One in 12 African-Americans has sickle cell trait. However, having the trait rarely causes such extreme illness.

Sickle cell trait is different from sickle cell disease. Usually people with the trait have no symptoms and live normal lives without worry. Having sickle cell trait means a person has only one copy of the sickle cell gene. Those with the disease inherit two copies — one from each parent.

With sickle cell disease, red blood cells become sticky and look like a C-shaped farm tool called a “sickle” during times of bodily stress. Weather changes, illness, dehydration, low oxygen and high altitude are all triggers.

Sickle cells block arteries, causing severe pain throughout the body. Because sickled red cells die quicker, those with the disease have anemia. Sickle cell disease also raises the risk of infection, stroke and vision loss.

Since Denver is a mile above sea level, the low oxygen caused Clark’s cells to sickle, damaging organs, including his spleen.

This level of severity is unusual since he only has the trait, making the case that sickle cell trait may not be as benign as once thought. Sickle cell trait has also been highlighted in the media recently for its link to sudden cardiac death.

The biological mechanism is unclear. But, scientists know that rigorous athletic activity in athletes with sickle cell trait in intense heat, while dehydrated or without appropriate conditioning raises the risk of sudden death.

PITTSBURGH – The Pittsburgh Steelers’ potentially long road through the AFC playoffs won’t include running back Rashard Mendenhall.

Mendenhall tore the ACL in his right knee in Sunday’s 13-9 win in Cleveland and will require surgery, knocking him out of the postseason.

Mendenhall sustained the injury late in the first quarter while getting tackled following a 5-yard gain. The team’s leading rusher clutched the knee immediately and had to be helped off the field. He was on crutches following the game and coach Mike Tomlin indicated Mendenhall would at least miss this weekend’s Wild Card game against Denver.