Judge rules on restitution owed to NBA by Donaghy, co-conspirators
By WILLIAM BENDER
Philadelphia Daily News
Thu, Jul. 24, 2008
A New York judge yesterday ruled that the NBA is entitled to a total of $217,267 in restitution from Tim Donaghy and two suburban Philadelphia co-conspirators, while rejecting the league's argument that the ex-referee alone owed them more than six times that amount.
U.S. District Judge Carol Amon will set a payment schedule today for James "Baba'' Battista and Thomas Martino at their sentencing in Brooklyn, N.Y., federal court on interstate gambling and wire-fraud charges, respectively.
Battista, 43, a professional gambler from Phoenixville, and Martino, 42, of Boothwyn, have admitted to paying Donaghy, then an NBA referee, for correct basketball "picks'' he made by phone between December 2006 and March 2007, using the names of Martino's brothers as code words.
Donaghy, 41, who pleaded guilty in August to both the gambling and wire-fraud charges, is scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday.
Amon said in a court order yesterday that the three Cardinal O'Hara grads are collectively responsible for paying the NBA $149,448.69 in restitution, which takes into account Donaghy's earnings during the 2006-2007 season, the league's legal fees and money it spent reviewing game film.
The judge also ruled that Donaghy alone must pay another $46,018.25 in restitution, while Battista and Martino are collectively or individually responsible for another $21,800.
Amon rejected the NBA's earlier argument that it was entitled to nearly $1.4 million in restitution, including $504,719 Donaghy was paid for games that he officiated and bet on between 2003 and 2006 and the cost of an internal investigation that included interviews of all 57 league referees.
While the veteran referee began betting on basketball games in 2003 with a Delaware County insurance agent, Amon said the NBA could not recoup his earnings for the 2003-2004, '04-05 and '05-06 seasons because that gambling activity was not included in the federal charges.
The judge said Donaghy is not responsible for money the NBA spent interviewing referees as part of its internal investigation because those costs did not stem from the federal probe or prosecution of his crimes.
Battista, who is facing 10 to 16 months in prison, and Martino, who faces 12 to 18 months, are to appear before Amon today at 9:30 a.m.
Donaghy's crimes carry a combined 33-month jail term under federal sentencing guidelines, but he could receive a lighter sentence because of the early and extensive cooperation he provided to the FBI and prosecutors.
Attorneys for all three men have asked the judge to limit their clients' sentences to probation.  |