Ex-NFL running back Lawrence Phillips found dead in prison

  • By DON THOMPSON
  • Thursday, January 14, 2016 1:00am
  • News

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Lawrence Phillips, a star running back at Nebraska and first-round NFL draft pick whose pro career quickly unraveled amid disciplinary problems, was found dead in his California prison cell early Wednesday, and officials said they suspect suicide.

Guards at Kern Valley State Prison found Phillips, 40, unresponsive in his cell. He was taken to an outside hospital and pronounced dead about 1:30 a.m., the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said.

He had been housed alone in a segregation cell since April 2015 after he was suspected of killing his cellmate. A Kern County judge had ruled Tuesday that there was enough evidence to try Phillips in the death of Damion Soward, 37.

Phillips was sent to prison in 2008 to serve a sentence of more than 31 years after he was convicted of twice choking his girlfriend in 2005 in San Diego and of driving his car into three teens later that year after a pickup football game in Los Angeles.

He played for the St. Louis Rams before being released in 1997 for insubordination. He also played for the Miami Dolphins and San Francisco 49ers.

Phillips was once one of the top U.S. college football players at Nebraska, but he went from Heisman Trophy candidate to pariah after he beat a former girlfriend hours after a spectacular performance in a September 1995 win at Michigan State.

Phillips pleaded no contest to third-degree misdemeanor assault and trespassing and was sentenced to one year of probation. Tom Osborne, Phillips’ former coach at Nebraska, arranged for Phillips to undergo in-patient therapy for anger management at a Kansas clinic and suspended him for six games, a punishment many national observers deemed too lenient.

Osborne defended his decision to reinstate Phillips, saying medical personnel agreed that Phillips needed the structure of football in his life.

His former coach said Wednesday that he was surprised by Phillips’ death.

“All of his correspondence with me, in spite of his circumstances, have been fairly upbeat,” Osborne said. “I’m surprised because I didn’t see that coming.”

He said it was sad because Phillips had many gifts, not just in athletics.

“He was an intelligent person and had some good qualities,” Osborne said. “He was very loyal to his friends, and yet he had some anger issues and couldn’t overcome the demons in his life.”

Judge Michael Dellostritto on Tuesday ordered Phillips to face trial on a charge of first-degree murder with the special circumstance of lying in wait, Kern County court records show. The special circumstance could have led to the death penalty had he been convicted, but prosecutors said no decision on that had been made.

“Our condolences are extended to his family,” Deputy District Attorney Andi Bridges said after learning of Phillips’ death.

The cellmate he was accused of killing was the cousin of former University of Southern California and NFL wide receiver R. Jay Soward, who was well-known in Los Angeles during his career.

Jesse Whitten, Phillips’ attorney, did not immediately return telephone and email messages from The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Nebraska recruited Phillips out of a West Covina, California, group home, and he was a key member of the Cornhuskers’ national championship teams in 1994 and 1995. He ran for 165 yards and two touchdowns in a Fiesta Bowl win over Florida that clinched the national championship, then declared he would enter the 1996 NFL draft as an underclassman.

His former coach said he corresponded with Phillips every few months.

“Things weren’t going in a good direction for him. All I can say is I feel very bad, and I guess we feel like we did what we could for him,” Osborne said. “Whatever it was, it wasn’t enough.”

___

Sports Writer Eric Olson contributed to this story from Omaha, Nebraska.

___

This story has been corrected to show that Phillips was in segregation since 2015, not 2013, as corrections officials previously said in error.

More in News

(Juneau Empire file photo)
Aurora forecast through the week of Nov. 3

These forecasts are courtesy of the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Geophysical Institute… Continue reading

Karen Brewer-Tarver, a partner with the Juneau-based accounting firm Elgee Rehfeld, presents results from a third-party audit of the Juneau School District for past fiscal year to the Juneau Board of Education’s Finance Committee on Thursday night. (Screenshot from Juneau School District livestream)
Positive ending: School district emerges from fiscal crisis with first audit without a deficit in years

Report finds lingering problems with “internal controls,” recommends more staff and refining procedures.

Dan Allard (left) and Philip Martinez (center) from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers listen to John Bohan, an engineer with the City and Borough of Juneau, as the three men provide information about flood barriers to Juneau Assembly members during a meeting Monday night at City Hall. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Experts address flood barrier concerns of Assembly, will meet with residents next week

Advice for homeowners seeking to protect themselves to be offered by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

William Todd Hunt guides the Taku Winds ensemble through a rehearsal of music by Indigenous composers on Tuesday evening at Thunder Mountain Middle School. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Taku Winds will be blowing wildly this weekend with concert featuring Indigenous composers

“Eagles, Ravens and Wolf” scheduled at 7 p.m. Saturday at Thunder Mountain Middle School

Þorsteinn Þorsteinsson looks at a moulin on the Sólheimajökull glacier on Oct. 20. A moulin, or glacier mill, is a crevasse through which water enters a glacier from the surface. (Jasz Garrett / For the Juneau Empire)
Breaching a gap of 3,296 miles: Iceland’s experience with jökulhlaups

Glacial outburst floods a threat there for more than 1,100 years — what can Juneau learn from them?

Senate President Gary Stevens, R-Kodiak, speaks to members of the Senate majority caucus’ leadership group on Friday, April 12, 2024. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Education, energy and elections among priorities of Alaska Senate’s post-election agenda

Senate’s previous bipartisan majority will continue, albeit a bit smaller, after election.

A statue of William Henry Seward stands outside the Dimond Courthouse in downtown Juneau. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire file photo)
Juneau man gets 18-year prison sentence for sexual abuse of a minor

Craig Foster, 63, pleaded guilty to charge involving girl between 9 and 11 years old.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)
Police calls for Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)
Police calls for Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

Most Read