NFL legend Lawrence Taylor pleads not guilty to sex offender charges after his December arrest for failing to provide Florida police with a new address: The ex-Giants star received six years probation in 2011 for dating a 16-year-old girl the Bronx had
- Hall of Famer and registered sex offender Lawrence Taylor has pleaded not guilty to failing to report his new address to proper authorities
- The legendary Giants linebacker must report any change of address as part of a 2011 plea deal for admitting to having sex with a 16-year-old Bronx girl
- After claiming she was 19, Taylor eventually pleaded guilty to charges of sexual misconduct and having sex with an underage prostitute
- Taylor was sentenced to six years probation and has since moved to Florida
- In December, he was arrested in Florida and charged with failing to notify state authorities and police of his change of address
- His attorney, Mark Eiglarsh, said Wednesday the 63-year-old gave his home address in Florida instead of the hotel where he was actually living at the time
- Taylor wants the charges dropped for only moving out of his home at the suggestion of local police while he was having marital troubles with his wife, Lynette
- Taylor faces a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted on both counts
Pro Football Hall of Famer and registered sex offender Lawrence Taylor has pleaded not guilty to felony charges for failing to report his new address to Florida authorities.
The legendary New York Giants linebacker is required to report any change of address as part of a 2011 plea deal for admitting to having sex with a 16-year-old Bronx girl a year earlier. After claiming the girl told him she was 19 at the time, Taylor eventually pleaded guilty to charges of sexual misconduct and having sex with an underage prostitute. He received a six-year suspended sentence.
In December, he was arrested in Florida and sent to the Broward County jail for two counts of failure to notify state authorities and the police of a change of address, according to court records. He turned himself in after Pembroke Pines Police informed him he had an active warrant. Taylor was released on $500 bail shortly after he was booked.
His attorney, Mark Eiglarsh, said Wednesday that Taylor, 63, gave his home address in Florida instead of the hotel he was actually staying at at the time.
Taylor wants the charges dropped, Eiglarsh said, because the two-time Super Bowl champion only moved out of his home after Pembroke Pines police told him to stay in a hotel while he was having marital troubles with his wife Lynette had.
Lawrence Taylor exits a courtroom at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale
The legendary New York Giants linebacker must report any change of address as part of a 2011 plea deal for admitting to having sex with a 16-year-old Bronx girl in 2010. After claiming the girl told him she was 19 at the time, Taylor eventually pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge of sexual misconduct and having sex with an underage prostitute. He received a six-year suspended sentence
“He registered,” Eiglarsh said, as quoted by the South Florida Sun Sentinel. ‘He just put in an address he thought was right. This is the house he has lived in for years.
“But because of his marital problems, he spent some time 50 meters away at a hotel near his home.
“He took her directions and still believed his address was the house he lived in for years and he still lived in the pool house from time to time,” Eiglarsh continued. “So he mixed his time there. So did he break the law? I do not think so.’
In 2016, when Lynette was 42, she was arrested for domestic violence after she admitted throwing an object that hit Taylor in the head, causing a 3-inch cut. Pictured: Lynette’s mugshot from 2016
Eiglarsh told reporters that Taylor faces a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted of the two crimes.
Aside from his 2010 arrest for sex with a minor, Taylor and his second wife Lynette have endured a turbulent marriage.
In 2016, when Lynette was 42, she was arrested for domestic violence after she admitted throwing an object that hit Taylor in the head, causing a 3-inch cut.
Taylor has struggled with personal issues off the pitch both during and after his career, which ended in 1993.
In addition to numerous drug-related arrests, the former University of North Carolina star declared bankruptcy in 1998 and has served in drug rehabilitation at least twice. He was also arrested after a hit-and-run accident in the Miami area in 2009, although no one was hurt.
Taylor stayed in the public spotlight after his retirement, appearing on ABC’s Dancing With the Stars in 2009 and starring opposite Al Pacino in 1999’s Any Given Sunday.
Taylor is considered one of the greatest pass rushers in NFL history and has won two Super Bowls
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