Expectations are that White Sox manager Tony La Russa “will plead guilty to charges of some sort” in his driving-under-the-influence case in Arizona, a court official told the Chicago Sun-Times.
But the final details of the apparent resolution to La Russa’s case may not become clear until later this month.
Scott Davis, a spokesman for the Maricopa County Justice Courts, told the Sun-Times a guilty plea is expected at a change-of-plea hearing for La Russa on Dec. 21. However, he said it was unclear if La Russa had been offered a plea agreement, or what it may involve.
A White Sox spokesman deferred questions about the case to La Russa’s attorney, who could not be reached for comment Tuesday. A spokeswoman for the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office could not be reached for comment either.
La Russa pleaded guilty in 2007 to a misdemeanor DUI charge in Jupiter, Florida.
The Sox hired La Russa, 76, and a friend of chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, in October. The team did so knowing about his arrest, which occurred after a witness called police Feb. 24. The witness reported an SUV “swerving across all lanes” of a highway in Arizona that then hit a curb and began to smoke before coming to a stop, according to public records.
An officer found a grey Lexus RX350 and identified the driver as La Russa.
La Russa told the officer he had been “coming from a dinner with my friends with the California Angels baseball team,” had a tire blow out and was calling AAA, records show. The officer smelled alcohol, though. And tests taken that night allegedly showed La Russa’s blood-alcohol concentration was 0.095 — above the legal limit of 0.08.
While speaking with the officer in February, La Russa allegedly said, “Do you see my ring?” He then complained, “I’m a Hall of Famer baseball person . . . I’m legit. I’m a Hall of Famer, brother. You’re trying to embarrass me.”
La Russa has previously pleaded not guilty, and his attorney has complained in a statement about the length of time it has taken to resolve his case.
