Former Sports Bar Manager Expects To Be Indicted In Donaghy Case

A high school classmate of former NBA referee Tim Donaghy who is the former manager of a sports bar in the suburbs of Philadelphia expects to be indicted in the case of betting on NBA games. James Battista a former manager of a sports bar in Havertown, PA. went to Cardinal O’Hara High School in Springfield, PA. at the same time as Donaghy although they were two grades apart. Battista’s attorney said that the two men were certainly not strangers to one another. Battista was arrested in 1998 on bookmaking charges but as a first time offender he was put in a program that allowed him to expunge his record. Asked whether or not his client was a bookmaker Battista’s attorney Jack McMahon would not comment saying that was part of the nature of the charge. He went on to say that at some point he and his client would respond to that question. Donaghy who resigned as a referee back on July 9, is the subject of a Federal Investigation into charges that he may have bet on NBA games, and possibly affected the outcome of games he officiated. McMahon said that if Battista was asked to turn himself to authorities he would do so willingly.