Eagles’ Bennett indicted
HOUSTON — Authorities issued a warrant Friday for the arrest of three-time Pro Bowl defensive end Michael Bennett, who is accused of injuring a paraplegic woman as he tried get onto the field at Super Bowl LI to celebrate with his brother. The Harris County district attorney’s office said a grand jury indicted the 32-year-old Bennett, who previously played for the Seattle Seahawks but was acquired earlier this month by the Philadelphia Eagles, on a felony count of injury to the elderly. Bennett was a spectator at the game between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots at NRG Stadium in Houston in February 2017 when he tried to get on the field immediately afterward to see his brother, Martellus Bennett, a tight end for the Patriots at the time. Prosecutors allege he pushed through security personnel, including a 66-year-old woman in a wheelchair who was a stadium employee and who had told him to use a different entrance to access the field. Bennett is also accused of pushing two other people, including another woman, and ignoring a request by a police officer to stop as he made his way onto the field. Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said Bennett allegedly told the people he had pushed, “You all must know who I am and I can own this (expletive). I’m going down to the field, whether you like it or not.” Acevedo called Bennett “morally bankrupt” for pushing the two women. Police said the disabled woman suffered a sprained shoulder when she was allegedly pushed by Bennett, hitting the back of her 800-pound motorized wheelchair. Acevedo said a detective did not actively start working the case until September because the police department had prioritized more serious cases. The charge of injury to the elderly can be filed if a person intentionally or knowingly causes injury to a person 65 or older. It carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
› BOSTON — New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft is helping students and families of victims of the recent shooting at a Florida high school attend a march against gun violence. Patriots spokesman Stacey James confirmed Kraft provided the team’s official plane to fly families of the victims from the shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., as well as several other students who were injured in the attack. They will be attending today’s “March For Our Lives” rally in Washington, D.C. The group left Florida on Thursday. They will also fly home on the team plane. Authorities said
Nikolas Cruz killed 17 people in the shooting on Valentine’s Day. Former Arizona congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, retired astronaut
Mark Kelly, operate an antigun violence organization, and they reached out to Kraft for assistance.
BASKETBALL
› PORTLAND, Ore. — The Boston Celtics said All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving is set to have surgery today to alleviate pain in his left knee. Irving has been out since March 11, missing the past five games. There is no timetable for his return from the “minimally invasive” procedure. Celtics coach Brad Stevens was asked before Boston’s game in Portland on Friday night the ramifications of Irving’s surgery. “I don’t know yet,” Stevens said. “He’s going to have it tomorrow and we’ll know more about timelines after that.” The knee is the same one Irving injured in the 2015 NBA finals, requiring surgery.