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Wednesday, August 7 Former NBA player to go on trial next week Associated Press |
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Former NBA star Sylvester "Sly" Williams will go on trial next week on kidnapping, rape and other charges. The one-time member of the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics has been held in the Broome County Jail without bail since his arrest in January. Williams, 44, a first-round draft pick of the Knicks in 1979, faces felony charges of first-degree rape, first-degree sodomy and first-degree kidnapping in connection with an incident in September. Binghamton detectives said he held a woman captive for about 24 hours, tying her up and threatening her with a knife. Prosecutors also accuse Williams of having sex with a 42-year-old woman against her will Jan. 11 at her home in Endicott. The woman was threatened with a weapon, police said. Charges from both indictments have been consolidated for the Aug. 19 trial, said Geoffrey B. Rossi, the assistant district attorney prosecuting the case. The 6-foot-7 Williams, a former University of Rhode Island star, received a suspended prison sentence in 1991 in New Haven, Conn., on abuse charges filed by his girlfriend. At the time of his arrest, Williams was working at American Pipe & Plastics Inc., operating machines that bend and shape pipe. He earned about $20,000 a year. |