The limousine driver in an accident that injured two Detroit Red Wings will be charged with a misdemeanor, prosecutors said yesterday.
The one count - driving with a suspended license, second offense - is punishable by a year in jail.
If convicted, Richard Gnida, 28, also could be fined $1,000.
The crash occurred in Birmingham, Mich., a Detroit suburb, on June 13, six days after the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 42 years, sweeping the Flyers four games to none.
Defenseman Vladimir Konstantinov and team masseur Sergei Mnatsakanov emerged from comas in July. Both remain in fair condition at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak. Vyacheslav Fetisov and Gnida sustained minor injuries.
No felony prosecution is planned despite the presence of marijuana in the driver's system. Oakland County prosecutor David Gorcyca said he did not have enough evidence to charge Gnida, of the Detroit suburb of Westland, with a more serious offense as doctors could not conclude that the low levels of marijuana found in Gnida's system impaired his ability to drive.
Gnida's lawyer, James O'Connell, has said his client denies smoking marijuana the night of the accident.
* The New York Rangers have called a news conference for this afternoon of make a ``major announcement,'' and the Madison Square Garden Network reported that the team would end weeks of speculation by signing superstar Wayne Gretzky to a multiyear contract extension. The 36-year-old Gretzky is entering the final year of a two-year, $11 million contract and is eligible for unrestricted free agency after the season.
