FootballCARRUTH'S BAIL DOUBLED: Rae Carruth's bail was doubled to $3 million after he and two other men were arraigned on charges they planned to kill the pregnant girlfriend of the Carolina Panthers player.
Bail had been set Friday at $1.5 million for each of the three defendants. But that night Judge C. Jerome Leonard raised Carruth's bond to $1 million for each charge against him. The judge declined to give a reason for the move.
Carruth, 25, the Panthers' first-round draft choice in 1997, and William Watkins, 44, of Charlotte, were arrested Thursday. They were charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, attempted murder and shooting into an occupied vehicle. Michael Kennedy, 24, of Pineville, was arrested Friday on the same charges.
All three remained in jail Friday night.
OFFICERS CLEARED: The FBI cleared two San Diego police officers, saying the fatal shooting of ex-NFL player Demetrius DuBose during a confrontation in July was justified.
The FBI and the U.S. attorney for the Southern District reviewed police reports and transcripts of witness accounts.
"It's my opinion that a thorough investigation was done and there is nothing left to do," William Gore, special agent in charge of the San Diego office of the FBI, told The San Diego Union-Tribune in Thursday's editions. "We saw no violation of civil rights statutes."
FASSEL'S MOTHER DIES: After battling a number of medical problems since the summer, Dorothy Fassel, mother of New York Giants coach Jim Fassel, died at age 76.
"My mom was a real fighter," Fassel said in a statement released by the Giants on Thursday morning. "When she passed away, it was peaceful."
She died in Phoenix on Wednesday night, Fassel said.
At one point, she was undergoing dialysis treatments at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz. She had been on a ventilator after collapsing in the hospital.
Giants spokesman Peter John-Baptiste said Fassel will coach his team this weekend at Giants Stadium against Arizona.
Fassel said he would probably fly out to Arizona after Sunday's game.
VIKINGS HONOR MARSHALL: The Minnesota Vikings will retire former defensive end Jim Marshall's jersey No. 70 in a ceremony before Sunday's game against San Diego, the Vikings said.
Marshall, who played for Minnesota from 1961-79, appeared in a National Football League record 282 consecutive games and appeared in two Pro Bowl games.
Marshall, 61, is also famous for picking up a fumble during a 1964 regular-season game against San Francisco and running 66 yards into his own end zone. The Vikings won the game 27-22.
Other Vikings players whose jerseys have been retired include quarterback Fran Tarkenton, who wore No. 10, and defensive tackle Alan Page, who wore No. 88.
Basketball
JOHNSON PLACED ON IL: The New York Knicks, already down two big men, placed starting forward Larry Johnson on the injured list Saturday with a pinched nerve in his back.
The Knicks, struggling at 7-7 and missing injured starting center Patrick Ewing and forward Marcus Camby, will be without Johnson's services for at least the next five games.
Johnson, 30, missed two games in early November with the injury and sat out the last three before being placed on the injured list ahead of Saturday's 99-96 victory over Orlando.
The usually durable forward made eight starts for the Knicks this season, averaging 11.8 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.
He opened the season with a promising 24-point performance against Cleveland in a game in which last season's playoff ailments appeared to have healed.
Boxing
KRAJNC WINS TITLE: Sweden's Armand Krajnc took away Jason Matthews' WBO middleweight title by stopping the British fighter in the eighth round Saturday.
Krajnc, who fights in Germany, ran his record to 22-0 with 15 knockouts while Matthews is 21-2 with 18 KOs.