Nevada lawmakers want harsher penalties for ear-biting boxers

 CARSON CITY (AP) -- Shocked by Mike Tyson's ear-biting of Evander Holyfield, a Nevada legislative panel moved Sunday to impose harsh sanctions in such cases -- up to half the purse a fighter gets, with the money going to abused, neglected or molested children.
 Senate Judiciary Chairman Mark James, R-Las Vegas, said under current laws, the Nevada Athletic Commission can withhold up to 10 percent of the purse or $250,000, which ever is greater, for violations of fight rules.
 His committee voted to request a measure increasing that penalty to 50 percent of the purse. If introduced and passed in the remaining few days of the 1997 session, it couldn't be applied retroactively to Tyson.
 James also said the commission should use its existing legal authority to conduct a probe to see whether Tyson's actions amount to a crime.
 He also cited an existing state law penalizing anyone who "deprives a human being of a member of his body, or disfigures or renders it useless."
 Felony provisions, with penalties of up to 10 years in prison, apply "if a person cuts out or disables the tongue, puts out an eye, slits the nose, ear or lip, or disables any limb."
 James said some might joke about the Tyson-Holyfield fight, but he's serious and the plan's approval would show "we aren't going to tolerate this in Nevada."
 He even backed up to change his phrasing after other senators began laughing when he described how the funds taken from such fighters would be "earmarked."
 But other lawmakers made light of Tyson's actions, including Sen. Maurice Washington, R-Sparks, who wore bandages on his ears that had the words "bite me" written on them. He also called Tyson "ear-responsible."
 Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas, challenged James' proposal, saying Tyson was reacting to a head-butt from Holyfield and "really got his attention" by using old, albeit dirty, boxing tactics.
 "What was done when a guy got his head bashed in and died? Nothing was done," Neal added, referring to the May 1995 death of Jimmy Garcia after his super bantamweight title fight against Gabriel Ruelas in Las Vegas.
 "It's boxing. It's a pugilistic sport," Neal said. "You expect people to get hurt and harmed."