The exact details are still sketchy nearly a month after the episode–but Williams, 34, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter in the shotgun death of Costas (Gus) Christofi, a 55-year-old limo driver who had spent the evening chauffeuring Williams and his friends around. Summoned to the estate around 3 a.m., New Jersey state troopers found Christofi on the floor of Williams’s bedroom with a massive wound in the chest. Witnesses said Williams had been handling the shotgun in a reckless way, according to police. News reports said a blood-alcohol test showed he was legally intoxicated. Charged with manslaughter, he was released on $250,000 bail pending further investigation. His lawyer said Williams was innocent of the charge and called the shooting “a tragic accident.” Williams himself issued a statement saying, “Me and my wife would like to send out our heartfelt condolences to Mr. Christofi’s family.”
Williams got another burst of unwanted publicity last week. Quoting an unnamed witness, Sports Illustrated magazine reported that Williams “freaked out” after the shooting and tried to place Christofi’s fingerprints and palm prints on the gun, apparently to make it appear that he had committed suicide. The story also said Williams disposed of the bloody clothes he was wearing at the time. Police and prosecutors refused to comment on the story.
Williams has been in trouble over guns before. In 1994 he was charged with a weapons violation and last year he got into an alleged scuffle with a cop. “We’d have beers at the range, and he’d show off how good he was with the guns,” said former heavyweight champion Larry Holmes, a friend. Williams now faces five to 10 years in prison if he is convicted and massive legal bills even if he’s acquitted. His broadcast career, meanwhile, is in limbo: NBC Sports has announced Williams will not appear on the air until the case is resolved. It may be even longer before he gets his smile back.
