What I think about Cable and Hanson
By now, you must have heard that Napa County District Attorney Gary Lieberstein has decided not to pursue the case against Tom Cable. It was a strange setting for a press conference, on a Napa sidewalk that almost seemed like an alley outside the DA’s door. There was a small crush of reporters and cameras, few of whom I recognized from the sports world, and a smattering of amused bystanders. One of them applauded after Lieberstein’s address.
I have to say I wasn’t surprised by his decision.
Maybe you were. If so, it may have been because of the way news was disseminated in this story. In short, it all came from one wellspring: Hanson. First it came via an unnamed source who obviously had ties to the assistant coach (if it wasn’t actually from Hanson). Next it came from Hanson’s attorney, John McGuinn. Finally it came from Hanson himself when he went public to Yahoo Sports.
In the end, Hanson undid himself with his inability to pipe down. Lieberstein said one of the basic reasons he dropped the case was that Hanson’s message was inconsistent. What he told Yahoo didn’t match what he had told the Napa police, and when the DA called him in for a second interview, Hanson still wasn’t able to fix the discrepancies.
All along, Cable refused to talk about the incident. Not a word, other than “nothing happened.” It didn’t always look good. It was easy to surmise that Cable was hiding something. If nothing else, he seemed overconfident, almost smug, that the wheels of justice would spare him rather than crush him.
Now Cable’s silence looks commendably stoic, while Hanson’s periodic monologues seem borderline hysterical.
I’m not saying I’m happy because justice was served. I don’t pretend to know exactly what happened in that hotel room, any more than I knew the day story broke. It’s still Hanson’s word against Cable’s (and John Marshall’s, and Willie Brown’s, and Lionel Washington’s). We may never sort it out.
Still, it’s good to see that the guy who talks the loudest isn’t always the one who wins the argument.
Phil Barber covers the Raiders for The Press Democrat, uncovering news and features despite the team’s best efforts to keep everything a secret. He’ll keep our online audience up-to-date and informed with his blog “Instant Raiders.”
Nobody knows what happened, that is why we have a legal system to sort out the questions. What your upset about is you didn’t get to make-up the story to your liking. All of you bozo’s in the sport media had Cable convicted and tossed out of the NFl sitting behind bars. You couldn’t write the verdict fast enough. Cable did the right thing by keeping his mouth shut and let legal counsel handle his defense not the raider hater press who had him convicted before trial. If we could have a legal system to your liking we wouldn’t have a legal system but a sport media verdict taken from assumtions. You folks are like our government who has no creditability. Everyone one of you convicted Cable, and not one, I repeat not one sports writer said “let the case be presented” before we assume he is guilty, not innocent. Your lucky they created the internet because no one would buy your newspapers to read your bias reporting.
by jake
What really happened – Quess what – No Raider fan even cares. Just waiting for the Jet game.
by Diamond Jim
jake:
I think you’re comment should actually be directed at the national media and bloggers more than any of the local guys on the Raider Beat such as Barber. It seems to me the Raider beat writers were much more honest in this story…emphasizing the source (Hanson) etc. It was the national media (ESPN, Fox etc.) that took the bits of info and turned it into the “Cable punched out Hanson” firestorm so to speak.
by KingSnake
ALL of the so called sports writers in the bay area, are
total butt heads, they all hate the Raiders they make that
very clear on all the articles they write about the Raiders.
GO RAIDERS
by Radlady
Jake:
What a bizarre comment. It’s almost as though you didn’t even read my post. In fact, it’s like you haven’t read anything I’ve written on the topic for two months. Here’s a link to a post from Aug. 22, counseling my readers not to jump to conclusions on the case: http://raiders.blogs.pressdemocrat.com/10351/raiders-all-time-roster/
Since then, I have been VERY careful not to suggest we know what happened at the Napa Marriott. And most of my colleagues on the Raiders beat have been equally careful. Please don’t confuse us for the screaming talk-radio hosts and long-distance bloggers.
Respectfully,
Phil
by Instant.Raiders
Phil:
So glad to see that you responded to the comment that was posted by Jake. A very bizzare comment indeed. I have read your articles for quite some time & it is my believe that you are one of the few well rounded sports writers that we have in the surrounding area. Keep up the good work!
B- Dog
by B - Dog