Tom Lewand Notes: Wrapping Up This Story For Now

• Tom Lewand's arrest hasn't had any effect on contract negotiations with rookies, which was evident based on the fact that four have signed since last Friday. Still, we got a little update from Jahvid Best's agent, as well as the agent of Amari Spievey, on where negotiations are at and what role Lewand had in them.
  

  Tony Fleming, the agent for first-round pick Jahvid Best, a running back, said in an e-mail that Lewand's situation would not affect contract negotiations.

  "No," Fleming wrote. "Not at all. We hadn't started talking anyway."

  Andy Simms, the agent for third-round pick Amari Spievey, a cornerback, said he had dealt mostly with general manager Martin Mayhew and pro personnel assistant Joe Pirucki.

  "I don't think it'll have any effect," Simms said. "From my end, those are the two guys that I've been dealing with anyway. I'm sure, internally, they have to figure out what's going on. But from my end, I think everything is smooth, and there's no effect."

  Both of those tidbits are interesting, to say the least.
  
• Lewand was up near Houghton Lake for the Kolo Golf Outing, which is an annual charity event originally started by former Lion Bob Kowalkowski. His son now runs the event, as Bob passed away last September.
• The Free Press reports that Lewand "had been in treatment for alcohol abuse for several months," and according to Tom Kowalski, Lewand "had been receiving counseling for more than a year."

(More after the jump)

• The owner of the bar that Lewand pulled out of shortly before he was stopped by police, Bob Hallauer, blamed "overzealous cops" for the arrest. Seriously.
  

  Bob Hallauer, the owner of the Limberlost for 10 years, said Lewand was the victim of overzealous cops trying to raise money by issuing tickets on M-55.

  "Come on vacation, leave on probation — that’s what people say about Houghton Lake," Hallauer said.

  The Limberlost is a popular cozy, Up North-style place on the shores of Houghton Lake, where locals and visitors arrive by car, boat or snowmobile.

  "The police wait for people to pull out of your parking lot and pounce on them," Hallauer said.

  I could understand this line of thinking if Lewand was pulled over the second he exited the bar, but based on the video, that was not the case. According to police, Lewand was weaving in and out of his lane even before the dashboard camera was turned on, and once it was, it was clear he couldn't keep his vehicle under control. It's not like the police pulled him over unprovoked or something.
• This was the county sheriff's response to Hallauer's accusation:
  

  Roscommon County Sheriff Randall Stevenson denied that his deputies were trolling for drunken drivers.

  "My officers do not sit on bars," he said. "They do patrol the roads, and part of their job is to arrest drunk drivers."

  Again, it'd be one thing if Lewand was pulled over the second he started driving, but based on the video, the stop didn't occur until after the police observed Lewand's car swerving in and out of his lane.
• What's interesting about the timeline of this incident is that Hallauer claims he never saw Lewand at his bar. Also, Ray Lane, who was at the kickoff dinner for this charity event until 8:30, said he didn't see Lewand drinking while he was there. In that regard, it is unclear where Lewand got drunk, although it does seem like he did his drinking in a pretty compact span of time.
  
• Former Lions Eddie Murray and Mike Utley shared their thoughts on Lewand at Utley's charity golf outing.
• Linebacker Antonio Pierce, who is currently a free agent, went on a little bit of a rant on Twitter about how Roger Goodell better discipline Lewand just like he disciplines players who get in trouble.
  

  I hope Roger Goodell holds NFL exec to the same standards as the Players. Trust me all Players are talking about that Right now.
  
  All I am saying that when a NFL player gets into any Legal trouble the first words out of every1 mouths is "What will Goodell do?"
  
  So what I am saying is "what will Goodell do when a NFL Exec, Coach, Owner, or anyone who gets in trouble with the LAW DO?" same STANDARDS..
  
  Same Standards I hope. We all Represent the "SHIELD" and "LOGO"

  Pierce must not follow the news very closely, because one of the first things that was asked when the Lewand news broke is what punishment he will receive from the league. What's more, Goodell already basically said that Lewand will be disciplined, so it's not like he is above the personal conduct policy. Obviously any discipline won't be as newsworthy as a player getting suspended, but I'm sure he will be fined at the very least.