Former Nebraska football star Lawrence Phillips charged with murder in death of cellmate

Former Nebraska football star Lawrence Phillips has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of his cellmate at a California prison, the Associated Press reports.

Phillips, 40, is accused of killingDamion Soward, who wasfound unresponsive in his cell in the Kern Valley State Prison in Delano, California, in April. Phillips is serving a seven-year sentence for felony assault with a deadly weapon and also faces a 25-year sentence for felony domestic assault.

Phillips was an all-conference running back at Nebraska in the mid-1990s, helping the Cornhuskers to back-to-back national championships in 1994 and 1995. He had various disciplinary problems while in college, including an infamous 1995 incident in which he was arrested after being accused of dragging his girlfriend down the stairs by her hair.

Phillips was drafted No. 6 overall by the St. Louis Rams in 1996, but lasted just three seasons in the NFL due to inconsistent play and his inability to stay out of trouble. He last played professional football in 2003 with the CFL's Calgary Stampeders.

Phillips has been incarcerated since 2008, and was not eligible for parole until 2034 after being convicted of choking his girlfriend and later of driving his car into three teenagers after a pick-up football game. Under the new charge, he faces 25 years to life, plus 15 years, meaning he'd spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted.

Prison officials determined that Soward, who was in prison on a murder charge, was choked to death, and that Phillips was the only other person in the cell at the time.

source : http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2015/09/former_nebraska_football_star.html