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Belfour, Peltonen Agree to Plea Deals

THE PALM BEACH POST MAY 10,2007

FLORIDA PANTHERS

By BRIAN BIGGANE
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

MIAMI — Panthers goal-tender Ed Belfour got off with a figurative slap on the wrist Wednesday for his lat­est legal transgression.

Belfour, who was arrested and charged with two misdemeanors after a team party last month on South Beach, agreed to a plea bar­gain Wednesday in Miami-Dade Circuit Court.

Left wing Ville Peltonen, who was charged with one count of criminal mischief at the same location as Belfour, agreed to a similar plea deal. Neither defendant was present at the hearing, which took only minutes in front of Judge Darrin P. Gayles at the Miami-Dade County Courthouse.

"It was an incident that got escalated by the media attention involved," said Jon Rosenthal, Belfour's attor­ney. "We were able to resolve it with the state."

Prosecuting attorney Pablo Arrue, who was not present, did not return a call seeking comment.

According to the arrest report, police had to be called when Belfour refused requests by security offi­cers to leave a South Beach bar the morning of April 9, two days after the Panthers' season ended. He scuffled with police and was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest without violence.

At roughly the same time, Peltonen was arrested after police saw him vandalizing a fire department vehicle that was parked nearby.

Belfour, 42, also was charged with resisting ar­rest in an incident that oc­curred while he was playing with Dallas in March 2000. He received probation.

In this case, Belfour agreed to serve 20 hours of community service, make a written apology to the arresting officer and make a $200 contribution to the Police Athletic League.

Peltonen, 33, agreed to serve 15 hours of commu­nity service, pay $185.31 as restitution for damages and make the same $200 PAL contribution.

Rosenthal said Belfour "likes doing community service anyway," adding that he "wants to move on with his life."

Panthers coach and Gen­eral Manager Jacques Mar­tin, who was in Russia for the World Hockey Champi­onships and unavailable for comment, has said the or­ganization will consider its goaltending options when it conducts its annual scouting meetings next week.

Rosenthal said his cli­ent hopes to be back in the Florida nets next season.