By Robert Haugh
Jed York is back. And he’s back in charge of the 49ers.
Just eight weeks after his arrest in an Ohio prostitution sting, York returned to the public stage last night, Tuesday, October 20. York attended an NFL owners meetings in New York.
Tim Kawakami, a longtime 49ers columnist now with the San Francisco Standard, predicted York would “immediately be back in charge — publicly and privately — as soon as his suspension ended.”
According to SFGATE, York walked into the NFL meetings without stopping to answer reporters’ questions. Kawakami also expects York to attend Sunday’s 49ers game against the Atlanta Falcons.
York’s return follows two months of embarrassing headlines, criminal charges and an NFL suspension.
But the punishment may not have been as severe as it first appeared.
On October 2, the NFL suspended York for six games and fined him $500,000 for violating its Personal Conduct Policy.
However, the league credited York for three games he voluntarily missed before the suspension was announced. He served only three additional games before returning.
And his criminal punishment was even lighter.
A San Francisco Chronicle investigation found that York received substantially more favorable treatment than most defendants arrested in similar prostitution stings in Columbiana County, Ohio.
The Chronicle reviewed 100 comparable cases. Only two defendants, including York, had their prostitution charges reduced to disorderly conduct.
Most other defendants received suspended jail sentences and probation requirements.
York received neither.
Instead, he pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges, received credit for time already served and paid $1,150 in fines.
The Chronicle also reported that York unsuccessfully attempted to have his criminal case sealed.
49ers fans are gnashing their teeth hoping he doesn’t screw up the team’s 6-0 start to the season.
[…] York returns to the 49ers after serving a couple days in jail, getting a six-game NFL suspension, and paying a modest […]
As I said before, we would love to have these images of inmate York on yard signs!
The biggest evidence of special treatment was that Jed York got his case disposed of the day after the arrest, enabling him to get his phone back immediately. Who knows what evidence of other activity might have been found on it? The $500,000 fine was also light in comparison to the millions he is spending to get Clueless Gary Ferraris elected mayor and preventing Yvonne Inciarte from representing the Latino community in her district. Voters need to support any candidate that will get Fat Cat big money out of elections. Ferraris and Williams could have both said no, but they didn’t.