Return of the Steroids controversy

Sources: Panther obtained steroids
Lineman Donnalley retired after 2005 Super Bowl
CHARLES CHANDLER
Staff Writer


Former Carolina Panthers offensive lineman Kevin Donnalley obtained NFL-banned steroids through a West Columbia physician at the center of a federal steroids investigation, according to two sources close to the situation.

Donnalley, who retired after playing for the Panthers in the Super Bowl in February 2004, was a patient of Dr. James Shortt in at least 2003 and 2004, and obtained testosterone through the doctor, the sources said.

The sources asked that their identities be protected because of legal concerns.

Donnalley, who played guard, is the third member of the Panthers starting offensive line from their Super Bowl team, and the fourth team member overall, identified as having obtained steroids through Shortt.

Donnalley, 37, declined to comment.

A CBS News report in March named center Jeff Mitchell, tackle Todd Steussie and punter Todd Sauerbrun as having filled prescriptions written by Shortt for steroids, including within two weeks before the Super Bowl on Feb. 1, 2004.

NFL players are not allowed to possess, use or distribute steroids and related substances because they're linked to performance enhancement and health risks. It is illegal to possess or use steroids without a valid medical reason. Anabolic steroids, including testosterone, are considered a controlled substance under federal law and the state laws in North Carolina and South Carolina.

The Panthers have said none of their current or former players are targets of the investigation. But they acknowledge some players have been sought by the Drug Enforcement Administration to be interviewed as witnesses regarding Shortt.

On May 17, Donnalley was named football coach at Charlotte Christian School. Dr. Leo Orsino, Charlotte Christian president and head of the school, said he knew nothing about Donnalley's obtaining steroids through Shortt while with the Panthers.

"I know Kevin Donnalley as an outstanding, Christ-honoring, godly man, father, leader and coach," Orsino said. "So many people here have been blessed by him and the impact he's made."

Donnalley, an assistant coach at Charlotte Christian last season, said when he was hired that even though he wanted to win, his success would be measured by whether his players eventually become successful businessmen, husbands and fathers.

Panthers general manager Marty Hurney said the team could not comment out of respect for ongoing federal and NFL investigations. Hurney said he could not say whether Donnalley's name was included in a subpoena earlier this year from the DEA. The subpoena sought information so federal agents could contact certain players about Shortt.

Hurney said as far as he knew Donnalley never tested positive for steroids while with the Panthers. NFL players have been randomly tested for steroids during the regular season and the offseason since 1990, one year before Donnalley entered the league.

The House Committee on Government Reform is one of two congressional committees that have held hearings regarding steroids in pro sports, including the NFL, Major League Baseball, the NBA and the NHL. The Government Reform Committee began investigating the NFL's steroids policy after Mitchell, Sauerbrun and Steussie were named on "60 Minutes Wednesday" in March for filling prescriptions for steroids written by Shortt.

Of the three, only Mitchell remains with the Panthers. Sauerbrun was traded to the Denver Broncos on May 19. Steussie spent last season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and is still on their roster.

CBS reported that Mitchell, Sauerbrun and Steussie filled prescriptions for testosterone, and that Sauerbrun also received the anabolic steroid stanozolol.

The S.C. Board of Medical Examiners in April suspended Shortt's license to practice medicine. According to the board's suspension order, Shortt prescribed the steroid testosterone to four unnamed male patients "in doses and frequencies that were extremely unlikely to have been prescribed with any legitimate medical justification."

The board would not say whether those four patients were Panthers players.

Shortt is under investigation by the DEA and the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division for possible illegal steroids distribution. A grand jury in Columbia has heard testimony about Shortt from some current and former Panthers players, according to The State newspaper.

Shortt declined comment about Donnalley. The doctor told the Observer in March that he had prescribed steroids in low doses to patients when medically necessary for healing and repair -- and not to athletes for performance enhancement.

Also under investigation is Congaree Pharmacy, which filled prescriptions for Shortt's patients and is located in the same building where Shortt's office was located before his suspension. Testosterone was found in Shortt's office during a September 2004 raid of the doctor's office by federal, state and local police, according to court records.

Donnalley, a Raleigh native, played 13 years in the NFL following his college career at Davidson and North Carolina. He started six games for the Panthers in 2001 before a knee injury sidelined him. He was a full-time starter in '02 and '03.

Donnalley has had an active role in community service projects in the Charlotte area, most notably as a spokesman for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

He befriended 12-year-old terminal cancer patient Hope Stout during his last season with the Panthers. He helped the Make-A-Wish Foundation's successful campaign to raise money to carry out Hope's desire to fulfill wishes for all 155 children on the local foundation's list.

 

I'd was gonna say that suprises me, but I don't know that I've ever seen a lineman look more like a banker six months after retirement than he does.

 

I made this call back when the original story broke.

 

I wouldn't be shocked if all of the Panthers that were summoned by the feds about steroids are either already gone.

Stuessie
Sauerbrun
Donnalley

Were there any others?

Nate Black?

Any others?

I mean, knowing JR's sensitivity to the team's image these days, I don't think there are any more of the 'roiders left here.

 

I just hope #90's name doesnt surface in any of this

 

I think he's just a natural freak.

 

After that stuff his rookie year, I tend to believe he's been careful.

 

Mitchell. In the last year of his contract.

 

spics, chinks?