Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Thursday that getting rid of Terrell Owens was necessary to save his team. “In the aftermath of the season, we talked about change,” Jones said in a statement. “Some of what is changing involves the process and some of it involves people. This is a decision that was made based upon consideration for an entire team. We will move on now with a new team – a new attitude – and into a new stadium. The evaluation process and the prospect for change will continue at every level of the organization.” Even though there have been rumblings about waiving Owens for some time, the outspoken, controversial wideout told teammate and fellow wide receiver Sam Hurd that he was “more shocked than angry” when he heard of Jones’ decision. “He didn’t give me an explanation. He just said, ‘Wow,’” Hurd said Thursday. “I really didn’t believe that he seen that coming. … He said it’s tough, but it’s a business.” Few receivers have more catches, yards and touchdowns than Owens. His 38 touchdowns over the past three years are tops. But in the end, it was the dissention that he generated among his teammates at each of his three NFL squads that was his undoing.

In Dallas, which has the highest HIV rate in Texas, commissioners are considering whether to overturn a law that makes it illegal for county health officials to distribute free condoms. Fourteen years ago, health workers routinely went into high-risk neighborhoods to hand out condoms and sterilized needles. But in 1995, a thin majority of commissioners ruled that the program actually promoted illegal and immoral behavior. Over the past decade and a half, however, the HIV/AIDS rate has skyrocketed, particularly among poor and African-American communities in the county. County Judge Jim Foster, who supports reversing the condom policy, says he has enough votes to overturn the ban. “We should have never had it to start with,” he said. Kenneth Mayfield, one of the commissioners who voted for the ban, would now like to see limited distribution of condoms. Under his plan, condoms would be given out only after the recipients received counseling about their risky behaviors and were told that condoms are not 100 percent effective. In addition, under Mayfield’s proposal, county health workers could give free condoms only to high-risk individuals with HIV/AIDS or a sexually transmitted disease, those who have had sex with someone infected with the virus or an STD, and those who have had sex with prostitutes. Mayfield’s order would ban condom distribution in schools or “any venues where children are present.”

Cowboys player returns from suspension. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has allowed Adam “Pacman” Jones back into the NFL for a second time following suspension. Jones, who was only allowed back into the league this year after a lengthy misconduct suspension, was sat down again after a recent alcohol-related confrontation with his bodyguard at a Dallas hotel. He announced through a representative this week that he completed a rehab program. Goodell agreed to review Jones’ eligibility to re-join the Cowboys after four games, deciding in the cornerback’s favor.

Adam “Pacman” Jones cleared to play in Dallas this season. Formerly suspended Tennessee Titans cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones will officially begin his career with the Dallas Cowboys this season. Jones, who was the subject of an unconventional trade from Tennessee to Dallas while still banned from the league, has been reinstated. His numerous arrests in connection with felony incidents, including shootings – one of which left a nightclub employee paralyzed – led to Jones’ discipline. The kick returner restlessly missed all of last season, recently joining Dallas for workouts with permission from Commissioner Roger Goodell. “It feels good, man, you know, to get a second chance and I just have to take advantage of it,” Jones tells the Dallas Morning News. “First and foremost, I don’t want to let myself down, definitely (don’t want to let) my little girl down.” Jones also thanks the Cowboys ownership and fans.

Kevin Duckworth suffered from cardiomyopathy. Former Portland Trailblazers center Kevin Duckworth died of the same heart disease that killed his father and two siblings, a state medical examiner has announced. Duckworth was discovered collapsed and not breathing in Oregon this week, where he planned to host a free basketball clinic. The cause of his death was an enlarged heart “attributed to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with congestive heart failure,” the medical examiner reports. His sister Francine Duckworth says the retired player’s dad and brothers also died of congestive heart failure. Duckworth was 44.

Men’s basketball team could take top spot in Beijing Sunday. The “Redeem Team” could finally live up to its nickname on Sunday. But first, the men’s basketball players representing the United States at the Beijing Olympics will have to take down defending champion Argentina tonight. Argentina beat the USA in the 2004 Olympics semi-finals. If the men win against the South American ballers tonight, they’ll move on to Sunday’s gold-medal match-up. It would be the team’s first gold in international competition since 2000.

Two of Dallas’ pro athletes try their hand at beach volleyball.
Brandon Bass, Adam “Pacman” Jones compete for charity. Dallas Mavericks forward Brandon Bass will team up with recent Dallas Cowboys recruit Adam “Pacman” Jones next month for a celebrity charity event. Bass and Jones will host the First Annual Celebrity Volleyball Beach Battle Sept. 13. Several other Mavericks will also compete in the tournament, which pairs a celebrity with four fans on each team. The cost of all that fun in the sun? A meager $2,500 per team, with proceeds going to the Brandon Bass Reach Back Foundation.

New hate-crime definition is tested in Colorado.

A Colorado prosecutor said late last week that a 32-year-old suspect would be tried for first-degree murder as well as charged with a hate crime in the death of a 20-year-old transgender woman. Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck said that Allen Ray Andrade beat Angie Zapata to death with a fire extinguisher after discovering that she had male genitalia. The circumstances, Buck said in shifting the charges from second-degree murder, “support the first-degree murder charge.” The case will be the first prosecuted as a hate crime. Three years ago, then-Colorado Gov. Bill Owens signed a bill expanding hate crimes to include those against transgender persons. Adding an additional felony charge against Andrade means he would likely face a more severe penalty if convicted. Is this a good application of the hate-crime law?

AT&T sent the wrong message to this Black woman. A Dallas jury has awarded a whopping $411,339 to a woman who said that the AT&T dogged her because she was Black. LaKecious Edwards, 32, told the jury that she had filed grievances with the company as well as in a Texas court after three White colleagues – including one who had been written up on disciplinary charges – were promoted to top management positions for which she had applied, even though she had a superior sales record and greater seniority. AT&T, which denies that any discrimination occurred, touted its record on equal opportunity in the workplace. “We are confident that we have done nothing wrong, and we are exploring our options regarding a possible appeal,” said a company statement released through the public-relations firm Fleischman-Hillard. “AT&T has an excellent track record when it comes to the company’s fair treatment of minority employees. For AT&T, diversity and inclusion will always be top priorities.” The communications giant was formerly named by Black Enterprise magazine as one of the nation’s 40 “best diversified” firms. However, she is but one of three Black workers at AT&T to file discrimination suits. In February, 49-year-old Vincent Hall settled for an undisclosed amount and retired after more than a quarter-century on the job; another case, filed by Sonia Hackley, is still awaiting trial. The statue of limitations ran out on six other minority workers who wanted to file discrimination claims, according to Dallas attorney Stephen Drinnon, who represents Edwards. What do you think of the decision?

Pro Bowl safety will get a guaranteed $15 million.The Dallas Cowboys’ franchise player has signed a six-year, $39 million contract with the team. Ken Hamlin, a Pro Bowl safety, is guaranteed to earn $15 million, including a $9 million signing bonus. Hamlin’s deal was complete before a 4 p.m. NFL deadline Tuesday, by which teams were required to finalize long-term deals.

Rays Reyes is ‘relieved’
Major League Baseball pitcher Al Reyes won’t face charges stemming from a fight he had at a restaurant while celebrating his 38th birthday this year. Prosecutors dropped their case against the Tampa Bay Rays pitcher, who was hit with a Taser after the April bar fight. Reyes allegedly fell into a ceramic pot and then picked a fight with the man who he thought had pushed him. He later publicly apologized. Robert Heyman, Reyes’ lawyer, says the Dominican pitcher is “certainly relieved.”