Jim Brown begins jail sentence

LOS ANGELES - Flashing a clenched fist salute to his friends and family, former football hero Jim Brown was led away to begin a six-month jail sentence for vandalizing his wife&#39;s car. <br> <br> Brown, who was ordered to jail after he refused to undergo court-ordered counseling and community service, arrived in court Wednesday with his wife, Monique. <br> <br> ``Love you, man,&#39;&#39; several friends shouted as the former Cleveland Browns star was led away by deputies.<br> <br> Brown, who will serve his sentence in neighboring Ventura County, is being segregated from other prisoners because of his celebrity. <br> <br> ``It&#39;s a professional courtesy, and it happens on a regular basis,&#39;&#39; said sheriff&#39;s spokesman Eric Nishimoto. <br> <br> Attorney Milton Grimes said he would continue to appeal the Hall of Famer&#39;s jail sentence. <br> <br> ``I believe that the court abused their discretion. The incarceration of Mr. Brown is vindictive,&#39;&#39; he said Wednesday. <br> <br> Judge Dale S. Fischer initially sentenced Brown to a year of domestic violence counseling. She also ordered the former running back to spend 40 days on a work crew cleaning up streets or put in 400 hours of community service, pay $1,800 in fines and serve three years probation. <br> <br> When Brown refused the counseling and community service orders, the judge imposed the jail term. <br> <br> Brown, 66, was convicted of misdemeanor vandalism. Jurors acquitted him of the more serious charge of making a terrorist threat during a June 15, 1999, argument with his wife. <br> <br> Grimes said that although Brown&#39;s wife called police she didn&#39;t want him arrested and the former player did nothing more than destroy his own property. <br> <br> One of the greatest running backs in football history, Brown was No. 6 on The Associated Press list of top athletes of the 20th century.

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