One Shock Wave After Another

"He says, 'Quick, tell an assistant coach or someone to go over there and clean up the room,' " Driesell says. So Driesell shut the door to Purnell's office and told his assistant, "Lee said go clean up the room."

Purnell never did so. "Oliver started, I guess, walking over to clean up the room, and he gets to thinking that ain't the thing to do," says Driesell. "I didn't even think about it because here's a lawyer telling me what to do. The guy's supposed to be a lawyer."

Fentress confirms this account, but says his offhand remark to clean the room was made at an emotional moment and without consideration of the implications.

Wagner, meanwhile, admitted to reporters that he told Gregg to clean up suite 1103, but says he meant only that the room should be tidied up for visitors. Gregg and Long, whom the police couldn't locate during the day after Bias's death, spent the night of June 19 at Wagner's home, according to Marshall.

Marshall says he presented the grand jurors with the option of indicting Driesell, Fentress and Wagner. The grand jury voted not to indict any of the three. "What their reasons were I can't say," says Marshall. "I'd have to assume one was that they didn't feel anybody acted on [the advice], which really has nothing to do with it, but you know juries—they do what they want. And I think they felt that the reason for giving such advice was concern for the welfare of the young men." Marshall himself seems to have mellowed on this point. He says he doesn't think any of the three was motivated by evil intent, and "any crime needs evil intent."

"It was wrong," Marshall emphasizes. "Giving advice like that is out and out wrong. It's like a lot of other things in this world that we do and don't become criminals for, but they're wrong." Marshall also says Driesell knew about regular drug use by one player on his team—not Bias—and did nothing other than order the player to take a drug test.

Could Marshall conceivably, by pushing harder, have gotten an indictment of Driesell? Well, yes, he claims. "But do I think 12 jurors would have convicted any of the three? No."

Marshall goes one step further. "When you go after a king, you better be able to bring him down," he says. "And Lefty, he sure is a king."

Brian Tribble is a handsome young man, voted most attractive in his high school senior class a few years back. But as he talks of his present predicament, his voice betrays a hard, city-wise, slightly embittered edge. " 'Bias didn't bring it [the cocaine] in the room,' " he says mockingly. " 'Bias, he never did anything.' " He pauses. "S——."

Tribble is sitting in the living room of his parents' Washington home. Next to him is a shelf crammed with his old youth-league basketball trophies. "Let's put it like this," he says. "If I get any type of [jail time]...then all the dirt will be out 'cause I'm gonna try to cash in on everything I know. I know some pretty interesting stuff. The trial won't be the half of it. Lot of people will have sad faces."