14 Current NFL Players With a History of Domestic Violence
Ray Rice isn't the only problem in the NFL when it comes to domestic violence.
Image via Complex Original
Ravens running back Ray Rice and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell have been the focus of the media this week, as release of a video showing the three-time Pro Bowler hitting his then-fianceé Janay Palmer in an elevator prompted Rice's dismissal from the Baltimore Ravens and his indefinite suspension from the NFL. The incident and resulting fallout is troubling and traumatic for Rice, the league, and most unfortunate of all, Janay Palmer. But the Rice incident is not the first of its kind, and as the NFL and its supporters look to spin the Ray Rice incident into a one-off situation, it's crucial that they are held accountable for the players they've let walk away relatively unscathed in the very recent past.
Collecting data from USA TODAY and the U-T San Diego NFL arrest database, we've found 14 players who are currently active in the NFL, and who have a history of domestic violence charges or accusations in their past. We highlight these players because they are indicative of the NFL's continued inability to properly punish and address issues of domestic violence within their league. They are by no means the only players who have been charged with domestic violence in recent years. The USA TODAY arrest sheet tallies 89 separate incidents of domestic violence among players since 2000. Some of these players were either released or are retired now. But many of them were allowed to carry on with their careers. These players are just a fraction of that group.
Kevin Williams, Seattle Seahawks
Charged with: Fifth-degree domestic assault
Date: 8/28/2005
Status of case: Pleaded guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct, earning one year of probation and a $1,000 fine. NFL never suspended Williams.
A long-time member of the Minnesota Vikings, defensive tackle Kevin Williams is a six-time Pro Bowler with a checkered history in the league. Along with his role in 2005's infamous “Love Boat” scandal, Williams also faced charges for masking steroid use in 2008. However, before either of these incidents came to light, Williams was charged with fifth-degree domestic assault after his wife called 911 early in the morning of August 28, 2005. When officers came to Williams' house, his wife had two injuries to her left arm as well as blood on her T-shirt, and she claimed Williams assaulted her for not wearing her wedding ring. Williams pleaded guilty in court.
Week 1 Stats: 0 total tackles
Santonio Holmes, Chicago Bears
Charged with: Misdemeanor domestic violence and assault
Date: 6/19/2006
Status of case: Charges dismissed. Holmes participated in counseling sessions offered by the NFL.
Back when he was with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Chicago Bears wide receiver Santonio Holmes was charged with misdemeanor domestic violence and assault after the mother of his child told police that Holmes had choked her, thrown her to the ground, grabbed her arms, and slammed her into a door. However, the charge was dismissed in court because the woman was reluctant to testify against Holmes. She even asked that the charges be dropped. However, the prosecutor was adamant in taking Holmes to task for his alleged assault. Regardless, the judge found that there wasn't sufficient evidence to pursue the case any further.
Week 1 Stats: 2 receptions, 21 yards
Frostee Rucker, Arizona Cardinals
Charged with: Two counts of spousal battery and vandalism
Date: 6/21/2006
Status of case: Sentenced to three years of probation, 750 hours of community service, mandatory treatment for domestic violence, and a $520 fine. Suspended for 1 game by NFL. Won appeal with the league to overturn the suspension.
As a student at USC, defensive end Frostee Rucker was accused of fighting his girlfriend while he was hosting a party at his home in Los Angeles, and then breaking her phone. Charges weren't filed until over a year later when Rucker was already out of school and had been recently drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals. Charged with two counts of battery and vandalism, Rucker later reached a plea agreement with the court, taking one count of vandalism and another for false imprisonment. Though a one-game suspension was proposed for Rucker prior to the 2006-07 regular season, Rucker and his team appealed the suspension on the grounds that the NFL didn't have the right to impose a penalty for events that took place before Rucker's entrance into the league. They won the appeal. Rucker played five seasons for the Bengals and one with the Cleveland Browns before signing with the Arizona Cardinals last year.
Week 1 Stats: 0 total tackles
Randy Starks, Miami Dolphins
Charged with: Domestic assault
Date: 8/12/2006
Status of case: Ordered to receive mandatory treatment for domestic abuse. Dismissed by Tennessee Titans for one preseason game.
Charged with domestic assault against his fianceé, former Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Randy Starks turned himself into Nashville police during the 2006 preseason. Though Jeff Fisher opted to dismiss Starks from the team for one exhibition game, no further punishment was handed out by either the Titans or the NFL. In court, Starks was given similar leniency, as he was merely ordered to receive counseling for domestic abuse in lieu of pursuing the charges. After playing two more seasons with the Titans, Starks is entering his seventh season as a member of the Miami Dolphins.
Week 1 Stats: 1 total tackle
Brandon Marshall, Chicago Bears
Charged with: No. 1: False imprisonment and domestic violence, No. 2: Domestic assault, No. 3: Disorderly conduct.
Dates: No. 1: 3/26/2007, No. 2: 3/6/2008, No. 3: 3/1/2009
Status of case: No. 1: Charges dismissed. Marshall was ordered to complete anger management counseling. No. 2: One-game suspension from NFL. Acquitted on charges. No. 3: Charges dismissed.
Brandon Marshall has a troubled history with domestic violence, starting in 2007 when he arrested on suspicion of domestic violence in his Denver home, continuing in 2008 when he was arrested on misdemeanor battery charges in Georgia, and then occurring most recently in 2009 when he was arrested in Atlanta for disorderly conduct following an alleged fight with his fianceé. It appears that Marshall and his wife have a particularly contentious relationship, as she was accused of stabbing him in 2011 on a charge of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. The charge was later dropped, and Marshall told the concerned police that his wife had not, in fact, stabbed him.
In only one instance of Marshall's alleged or confirmed domestic violence was he suspended by the NFL. The league's inconsistency concerning the star wide receiver is one of the most prominent cases of their inability to create a standard and suitable punishment for domestic violence incidents.
Week 1 Stats: 8 receptions, 71 yards, 1 TD
Cary Williams, Philadelphia Eagles
Charged with: Unknown
Date: 2009
Status of case: Two-game suspension by the NFL.
Little is known about Cary Williams' 2009 domestic violence incident aside from a brief report on ESPN.com that detailed his eventual suspension, which wasn't levied until Williams had joined the Baltimore Ravens in 2010. Williams' agent Marc Lillibridge said that the incident was tied to a “personal family issue”. While discussing Ray Rice's possible suspension over the summer, ESPN.com's Jamison Hensley confirmed that the suspension was indeed tied to domestic violence. However, other details concerning who was involved and the extent of the violence are virtually unknown. Williams' name is conspicuously absent from NFL arrest databases and he doesn't have a criminal record.
Week 1 Stats: 1 total tackle
Tony McDaniel, Seattle Seahawks
Charged with: Misdemeanor battery
Date: 2/6/2010
Status of case: Charged with disorderly conduct. Suspended for one game by the NFL.
During his time in Miami, Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle Tony McDaniel was arrested for misdemeanor battery after he and his girlfriend got into a shouting and shoving match in the early morning of February 6, 2010. During the scuffle, McDaniel pushed her to the ground, where she hit her head against the pavement. Eyewitness testimony supported his girlfriend's side of the story, and McDaniel was eventually saddled with six months of probation and mandatory counseling. It wasn't the first incident of violence in McDaniel's past either. When McDaniel was a student at Tennessee, he was charged with aggravated assault for a fight that took place during a game of pickup basketball.
Week 1 Stats: 3 total tackles
Chris Cook, San Francisco 49ers
Charged With: Domestic assault by strangulation & third-degree assault
Date: 10/22/2011
Status of case: Suspended by Minnesota Vikings, then reinstated under the condition that he would stay away from the team until his court proceedings were taken care of. Missed 10 games as a result of his trial.
Arrested on charges of misdemeanor domestic assault and intentional attempts to inflict bodily harm on his girlfriend, and eventually facing one count of domestic assault and another for third-degree assault, former Minnesota Vikings cornerback Chris Cook was fully acquitted for his role in an argument that played out in his home on October 22, 2011. Cook and his girlfriend were in an argument centering on jealousy, as Cook was mad at her for texting her ex-boyfriend, and she was mad at him for getting too cozy with a dancer at a strip club.
The fight escalated and Cook's girlfriend ended up with a damaged eardrum and a bloody nose. Though she initially claimed to have been choked twice by Cook, she later dismissed the claim, saying that she had lied about the charge out of her anger toward Cook. As a result, the jury was unable to find credibility in the prosecution of Cook, and let him off on all charges. After missing 10 games with the Minnesota Vikings, Cook was back on the field to finish out the 2011 season.
Week 1 Stats: 0 total tackles
Erik Walden, Indianapolis Colts
Charged With: Suspicion of Assault
Date: 11/25/2011
Status of case: Sentenced to 50 hours of community service and mandatory counseling. The NFL took no action against Walden.
Now with the Indianapolis Colts, linebacker Erik Walden was charged with misdemeanor domestic abuse during his time with the Green Bay Packers. The mother of his two children claimed that Walden had pushed her, causing her to hit her head against their bed and damage her forehead. She then said that she hit Walden back in self-defense. However, once she discovered that Walden would be in trouble, she altered her story to say that she had provoked her boyfriend. Initially, Walden was facing a 90-day jail sentence and a $1,000 fine. Once the entire judicial process concluded though, his charge was severly reduced. Despite the charges, Walden continued to play for the Packers, and received no suspension from the league.
Week 1 Stats: 3 total tackles, 1 sack
Dez Bryant, Dallas Cowboys
Charged with: Misdemeanor family violence
Date: 7/18/2012
Status of case: Charge dismissed. The NFL never suspended Bryant.
During the 2012 offseason, Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant turned himself in to the DeSoto, TX police on a charge of misdemeanor domestic violence after an alleged argument with his half brother ended violently. His mother Angela D. Bryant made a 911 call saying Dez "tried to kill [her]". She also claimed that Bryant refused to leave the scene of the argument, despite the fact that he had struck her face and pushed her. Dez has since denied his mother's accusations, and the charge against him was dismissed in a November court case in 2012. The NFL never suspended Bryant for the alleged incident. In 2013, Bryant appeared in Dallas to speak at a local rally decrying domestic violence.
Week 1 Stats: 4 receptions, 55 yards
Daryl Washington, Arizona Cardinals
Charged with: Domestic assault
Date: 5/3/2013
Status of case: Pleaded guilty to aggravated assault on March 24 court case. Sentence still to be determined. Currently suspended for a year by NFL due to violation of league's substance abuse policy.
In May of 2013, police in Phoenix, AZ received a phone call from a woman claiming domestic abuse against Arizona Cardinals linebacker Daryl Washington. She told the police that her collarbone had been broken by Washington after he pushed her down to the ground. The call came just weeks after Washington had been suspended for four games by the league due to a violation of the league's substance abuse policy. In late 2012, Washington had also signed a 6-year/$32.5M contract extension with the Cardinals.
Since the incident, Washington has yet to receive a punishment from the league for the domestic violence, despite pleading guilty to charges of aggravated assault in March. Washington is however suspended for the entire 2014-15 season following another violation of the league's drug policy. He is a prime example of the league's deeply skewed and convoluted suspension policies.
Week 1 Stats: N/A
A.J. Jefferson, Seattle Seahawks
Charged With: Felony domestic assault
Date: 11/25/2013
Status of case: Released by the Minnesota Vikings. Charged with misdemeanor domestic assault and sentenced to a 90-day suspended jail sentence.
A.J. Jefferson's career with the Minnesota Vikings was over following a heated argument with his girlfriend that ended with him choking her. Area police were called to the scene and arrested Jefferson, holding him in jail on $40,000 bail. The team quickly decided to wash their hands of Jefferson while he went through the legal process, though the Cleveland Browns signed him to their squad before the end of the year.
In court, Jefferson was charged with misdemeanor domestic assault and given a 90-day jail sentence which was eventually suspended. In the 2014-15 season, Jefferson will help the Seattle Seahawks defend their crown as league champions.
Week 1 Stats: 0 total tackles
Greg Hardy, Carolina Panthers
Charged with: Two misdemeanor charges of assault
Date: 5/13/2014
Status of case: Found guilty and sentenced to 18 months of probation and a 60-day suspended sentence. The NFL has not yet suspended Hardy for his role in the incident.
If the NFL is serious about taking a hard stance on domestic violence in the league, then Greg Hardy will likely be the next player to receive a harsh punishment from the league. On May 13, Hardy was accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend and threatening to kill her at a condo in Charlotte, NC. Hardy was found guilty in July and sentenced to 18 months probation, along with a 60-day suspended sentence.
Hardy has already announced his intention to appeal the decision, and will return to court on November 17 so that a jury may weigh in on the issue. However, despite Hardy's current charge, the NFL has not yet made a decision on his future for the 2014-15 regular season. In Week 1, Hardy suited up for the Carolina Panthers in their victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Week 1 Stats: 4 total tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble
Ray McDonald, San Francisco 49ers
Charged with: Felony domestic violence
Date: 8/31/2014
Status of case: Trial and possible suspension pending.
Along with Greg Hardy, Ray McDonald has the most pressing case that the NFL needs to respond to in the wake of the Ray Rice decision. Just over a week ago, McDonald was arrested and charged with felony domestic violence involving his pregnant fianceé. He was later released on $25,000 bail.
Despite the gross allegation, McDonald took the field for the 49ers in the opening week of the NFL season. Said head coach Jim Harbaugh about McDonald's arrest, “The way the facts are and what’s known, he has the liberty to play in the game.” We'll see whether the NFL agrees in the coming days. The San Francisco 49ers have said that they will wait for the judicial system to make their decision on the case before they make their own. It is likely that the NFL will take a similar course of action.
Week 1 Stats: 3 total tackles