Tyson facing more legal woes

Bill Gang

Monday was another day of legal hassles for Mike Tyson.

In Las Vegas, a Metro police officer filed suit against Tyson, nearly a year and a half after being struck in the ring by the fighter during the aftermath of the Evander Holyfield fight at the MGM Grand.

Meanwhile, a prosecutor in surburban Washington, D.C., decided to proceed with criminal charges against Tyson for his alleged role in a traffic dispute Aug. 31.

Metro Police officer Thomas Moyer took a blow from Tyson during the in-the-ring melee that erupted after Tyson was disqualified for biting the ears of Evander Holyfield during their June 1997 title fight.

But Moyer claims a blow from fists registered as deadly weapons didn't hurt nearly as much as the ribbing he took from fellow officers, as the news clip was repeatedly played in the media.

Now, 16 months after the fight and a week after Tyson's boxing license was reinstated by the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Moyer has sued Tyson, saying he has suffered "embarrassment" and "mental anguish."

The lawsuit states Moyer, who was off duty and hired as security for the fight, was trying to keep peace when Tyson "began ranting and raving and striking out at the (officer) and anyone else nearby."

A Tyson swing missed Moyer's head but another "strong blow," the suit states, hit him in the chest causing "substantial damage, discomfort and injury for a significant period of time."

The public embarrassment Moyer suffered among his colleagues and the sports media because of the event, has resulted in mental anguish and "interference with his lifestyle," the suit states.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages from Tyson and Mike Tyson Productions Inc.

Tyson's criminal record played a major role in a prosecutor's decision to proceed with charges against him in Maryland.

The former heavyweight champion faces a Dec. 1 trial on misdemeanor assault charges following an Aug. 31 traffic accident in the Washington suburb of Gaithersburg, Md. Tyson has denied the charges.

"His record had a lot to do with it," Maryland State's Attorney Robert Dean said of his decision to try Tyson as scheduled.

A week and a half ago, Tyson and his attorneys met with Dean and asked him to postpone the trial for a year and eventually drop the charges against Tyson if he stayed out of trouble.

Initially, Dean said he would consider asking the judge to postpone the case by putting it on the District Court's inactive docket.

Legal experts say such handling of misdemeanor assault cases is common except when the accused has a criminal record. Tyson is on probation for a 1992 rape conviction in Indiana.

Dean acknowledged that an assault conviction could send Tyson back to jail for violating the terms of his probation. But he said that after careful consideration, he decided "there's no reason not to try it."

Key evidence in the case includes testimony from the two men Tyson is accused of assaulting, Abmielec Saucedo and Richard Hardick, along with other witnesses, said Dean. Tyson is accused of punching Saucedo in the face and kicking Hardick in the groin.

The Tyson camp refused comment Monday.

Kemp has said that an out-of-court settlement to head off a civil suit against the boxer is likely.

Saucedo and Hardick supported the return of Tyson's boxing license by the NSAC last week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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