NY Giants QB Convicted Of DWI

April 24, 1999 / 8:56 PM EDT / AP

New York Giants quarterback Kerry Collins was convicted Monday of driving while impaired and was ordered to pay $186 and surrender his driving privileges for one month.

Collins avoided further punishment for the conviction because he already has undergone alcohol treatment that was mandated by the NFL because of his Nov. 2 arrest in Charlotte.

Collins did not attend Monday's hearing in Mecklenburg Country District Court, but his lawyer, George Laughrun, entered a no contest plea on his behalf. Laughrun told Judge Fritz Mercer Jr. that Collins "expressed regret and sorrow" for the arrest.

Collins, signed by the Giants in February to a four-year, $16.9 million contract, was fined $100, the maximum allowed, and was assessed $86 in court costs.

People convicted of DWI in North Carolina usually are also ordered to undergo alcohol counseling. Collins was not, however, because Laughrun said his client had already completed an NFL-ordered alcohol rehabilitation program from Jan. 6 to Feb. 27 at the Menninger Clinic, a world-renowned mental health facility in Topeka, Kan.

The judge also revoked Collins' driving privileges in North Carolina until May 25, but Laughrun said his client moved out of his Charlotte home three weeks ago and had no plans to return to the state in the near future.

Collins, who in 1995 became the expansion Panthers' first draft pick, was arrested about nine hours after Carolina's 31-17 victory over the New Orleans Saints. Collins had just been signed by the Saints a few weeks earlier and was booed and taunted throughout the game by fans as he stood along the sidelines at Ericsson Stadium.

Trooper R.A. Benze, who made the arrest, testified Monday that Collins' car twice crossed the center line on a street that runs through one of Charlotte's most popular nightclub districts. Collins also nearly drove the car onto a curb, Benze said.

Collins refused to take a breath test when he was stopped, but was very polite, the trooper said.

Collins was cut by Carolina in October after reportedly telling the team his heart was no longer into being the Panthers' quarterback. New Orleans then signed him, but he also struggled with the Saints, and after the season they were not interested in re-signing the free agent.