Rams Look at Re-Signing Henley if Rules Eased : Sports: Team will help post $2-million bond if the cornerback, accused of drug trafficking, can travel without a federal officer as an escort, attorneys say.

SANTA ANA —  Attorneys for former Rams cornerback Darryl Henley said Thursday the team is interested in re-signing the embattled cornerback and would help him post $2 million in bail if he can travel to road games without being shadowed by a federal court officer as prosecutors want.

Henley was cut from the team on Sunday, his attorneys said, “after the Rams determined that the presence of a pretrial services escort would cause undue disruption to the team’s ability to prepare for, and play in, the games in question.”

If U.S. District Judge Gary L. Taylor does not modify the proposed conditions of the player’s bail, “Mr. Henley will lose his job with the Los Angeles Rams,” the attorneys said.

Taylor said last week that in addition to the escort, who would be required to follow Henley at all times--even sitting with him on the bench during games--Henley or a “responsible third party” such as the Rams would have to post bond in the amount of $1 million before he would relax a ban on travel outside the Santa Ana court’s jurisdiction.

The day after that ruling, Taylor ordered Henley’s attorneys to explain why they thought his bail should not be raised to $1 million, even if he could not travel with the team.

Ever since his arrest late last year, Henley has been restricted from traveling out of the Central District of California, which includes Orange and Los Angeles counties, as a condition of his bail.

His arrest followed his indictment, along with several others, on charges that he conspired to run a cocaine ring by using a former Rams cheerleader to deliver the drugs to drop-off points in Memphis and Atlanta.

Henley’s original bail was set at $200,000, but attorneys for other defendants who were denied bail complained that the football player was getting special treatment. Last week, Taylor expressed concerns about Henley’s bail being too low.

Gerald L. Chaleff, one of Henley’s attorneys, said the Rams are now willing to post a $2-million travel bond, with a justified affidavit of surety, and Henley would provide the court with a $200,000 cash deposit.

Chaleff noted that the $200,000 would constitute the majority of the $350,000 yearly salary that Henley would be paid if the Rams were to re-sign him. Henley’s family posted his present $200,000 bond after Henley was arrested last year.

In place of the court officer the judge presently favors, Henley’s attorneys proposed relying instead on the off-duty Anaheim police officer who normally travels with the team and makes sure that each player has made his bed check.

“Because an off-duty officer from the Anaheim Police Department normally travels with the Rams for security reasons, his presence (unlike that of a member of pretrial services) will not be disruptive to the team,” Chaleff wrote.

Members of the National Football League security team will also help ensure that Henley meets all of the court’s requirements, Chaleff said.

Federal prosecutors are expected to formally respond to Chaleff’s legal papers today.

But Assistant U.S. Atty. Deirdre Z. Eliot said the government, which considers Henley a major player in a serious drug case, favors a federal escort, and is opposed to Henley being watched only by an off-duty police officer who travels with the team.

Both sides are scheduled to meet on the matter Wednesday in Taylor’s court, but Henley’s attorneys have asked that the situation be resolved before then, because “it will determine Mr. Henley’s ability to return quickly to his employment with the Los Angeles Rams.”

Henley and his attorneys continue to insist that the cornerback is not a flight risk and no danger to the community. In fact, they say, he has made all court appearances and met all conditions of his bail. Taylor even granted Henley permission to travel to a family wedding in Waco, Tex., on his own.

“The fact that the Rams are willing to post a bond of the magnitude here proposed is a reflection of their strong and unwavering belief that Mr. Henley both recognizes his obligations to this court and intends to comply with them,” Chaleff said.

Although Taylor ordered that a pretrial services officer keep Henley’s salary in an escrow account and distribute it to him as needed, Chaleff said the court officer may not be able to do so legally and asked that a trust account be set up for Henley to get portions of his salary approved by the court.