SOMERVILLE, N.J. — The New Jersey prosecutor who headed the office that tried Jayson Williams in the death of a limo driver said today he reacted with “anger and disappointment” when he found out that an investigator had used the “N-word” to describe the former NBA star.
Hunterdon County Prosecutor J. Patrick Barnes said he didn’t think to remove William Hunt, who is white, from the probe.
Barnes said he was not in the room when Hunt, the lead investigator in the case, uttered the word.
Williams’ defense team is seeking to show that the probe was racially biased.
Williams, who is black, was acquitted of aggravated manslaughter in 2004. He was convicted of covering up the fatal shooting of limo driver Costas “Gus” Christofi, 55, on Feb. 14, 2002 at his former Alexandria Township.
The 41-year-old Williams faces a retrial on a reckless manslaughter count.
Hunt took the stand after Barnes, admitting that he used the racial slur to describe Williams.
Asked what he said about Williams, Hunt replied, “I used [the word] ‘n—–.'”
He said it was during a meeting in the prosecutors office that he used the slur.
“I was frustrated with what happened … I used that word,” he said.
Williams, who was in the courtroom today, looked visibly upset as the testimony continued into the afternoon.
Hunt said he was watching an episode of “MTV Cribs” featuring Williams’ home when the slur was uttered.
“He’s like a ‘street n——.’ You can take him out of the street, but you can’t take the street out of him,” said Hunt.
He said there were no prosecutors in the room, although there were investigators and other people not on the case in the room.
Williams retired in 2000 after nine seasons in the NBA.
With AP