Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Blood Test Shows Jayson Williams Was Wasted During Crash
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 18, 2010
Modified Feb 18, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 18, 2010
Modified Feb 18, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Tests show that former Nets player Jayson Williams's blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit after he crashed his Mercedes SUV into a tree in Manhattan last month. After his blood was finally tested at Bellevue, the results came back at 0.19 (it was previously rumored to have been .24, thrice the legal limit). But still, driving drunk at twice the legal limit is enough to double his trouble—the DA wants Williams, 41, to serve a year in jail, the maximum DWI punishment, after he does time for his other crimes.
Williams is awaiting sentencing next week in the accidental shooting of his limo driver in 2002; he's expected to get 18 months in prison and up to five years for trying to cover up the crime. Naturally, his lawyer thinks he should do his DWI time simultaneously, but the DA isn't having it, calling that option "the equivalent of no jail sentence at all," according to court papers filed last week. But Williams's lawyer Linda Kenney Baden tells the AP, "This is much ado about nothing. It's the tail wagging the dog here."
Really? Isn't it more like the sloppy drunk dog wagging his tail at the law after pounding drinks with college kids, swerving across four lanes of traffic on the FDR, and crashing into a tree? Williams has pleaded not guilty to drunken-driving charges.
Tagged
bal
blood alcohol
crash
dwi
jayson williams
test
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
A reliably Republican part of NJ, until ICE came to town
The Trump administration’s plan to convert a warehouse in Roxbury into an ICE detention center has upended local politics ahead of the midterm elections.
By
Mike Hayes
Published Oct 20, 2026 at 6:30 a.m. ET
NYC school integration debate exposes tensions between Black parents and Mamdani
Some see a blind spot when it comes to the representation of Black New Yorkers in Mamdani's administration and agenda.
By
Elizabeth Kim
News
NYC school integration debate exposes tensions between Black parents and Mamdani
Some see a blind spot when it comes to the representation of Black New Yorkers in Mamdani's administration and agenda.
By
Elizabeth Kim
Queens man charged with hate crime at Jewish-owned bagel shop displaying Israeli flags
By
Giulia Heyward
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
By
Stephen Nessen
High-ranking NYC officials to testify in ex-buildings boss Eric Ulrich's corruption trial
By
David Brand
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .