munichhilton wrote on Sep 9^th, 2014 at 9:56am:

That's the funniest thing I've ever heard you say.

Law enforcement official says he sent Ray Rice video to NFL months ago



Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice (AP photo)



NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune By NOLA.com
September 10, 2014

Atlantic, City N.J. -- A law enforcement official says he sent a video of Ray Rice punching his then-fiancee to an NFL executive five months ago, while league executives have insisted they didn't see the violent images until this week.

The person played The Associated Press a 12-second voicemail from an NFL office number on April 9 confirming the video arrived. A female voice expresses thanks and says: "You're right. It's terrible."

The law enforcement official, speaking to the AP on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation, says he had no further communication with any NFL employee and can't confirm anyone watched the video. The person said they were unauthorized to release the video but shared it unsolicited, because they wanted the NFL to have it before deciding on Rice's punishment.

The NFL has repeatedly said it asked for but could not obtain the video of Rice hitting Janay Palmer -- who is now his wife -- at an Atlantic City casino in February.

The league says it has no record of the video, and no one in the league office had seen it until Monday. When asked about the voicemail Wednesday, NFL officials repeated their assertion that no league official had seen the video before Monday.

The person said he sent a DVD copy of the security camera video to an NFL office and included his contact information. He asked the AP not to release the name of the NFL executive, for fear that the information would identify the law enforcement official as the source.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell initially suspended Rice for two games following the February incident, but the Ravens released Rice on Monday and the NFL suspended him indefinitely after the website TMZ released the video.

Goodell told CBS on Tuesday that "no one in the NFL, to my knowledge" had seen a new video of what happened on the elevator until it was posted online.

"We assumed that there was a video. We asked for video. But we were never granted that opportunity," Goodell said.

In a memo to the NFL's 32 teams on Wednesday, Goodell said that the league asked law enforcement for the video, but not the casino. "In the context of a criminal investigation, information obtained outside of law enforcement that has not been tested by prosecutors or by the court system is not necessarily a reliable basis for imposing league discipline," he wrote.

The video, shown to the AP on Monday, is slightly longer than the TMZ version, and includes some audio.

Rice and Janay Palmer -- now Janay Rice -- can be heard shouting obscenities at each other, and she appears to spit at Rice right before he throws a brutal punch. After she collapses, he drags her out of the elevator and is met by some hotel staff. One of them can be heard saying, "She's drunk, right?" And then, "No cops."

Rice had been charged with felony aggravated assault in the case, but in May he was accepted into a pretrial intervention program that allowed him to avoid jail time and could lead to the charge being purged from his record. A prominent New Jersey lawmaker called Tuesday for that decision to be reviewed.

Hours after portions of the video were made public by TMZ, Goodell suspended Rice indefinitely and Baltimore terminated his contract. He had originally been suspended for two games, and team officials had praised him for his apologies and actions after his arrest for aggravated assault.

Goodell and team officials said they were taking more severe action because of the violence in the video.


http://www.nola.com/saints/index.ssf/2014/09/law_enforcement_official_says.html#...

Hold Roger Goodell to standard he set for Saints, and fire him: Editorial




NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in late August he "didn't get it right" regarding the initial two-day suspension of Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)


By The Editorial Board, NOLA.com
on September 10, 2014 at 5:57 PM

The NFL requires players to avoid "conduct detrimental to the integrity of and public confidence in the National Football League." The same standard should apply to Commissioner Roger Goodell.

And based on that standard, Mr. Goodell should be removed.

The commissioner not only botched the punishment of former Ravens running back Ray Rice for punching his then-fiancée in an Atlantic City casino elevator, but his claim that the league wasn't given a video of the assault now seems false.

The Associated Press reported Wednesday afternoon that a law enforcement official said he sent the video showing Mr. Rice knocking out fiancée Janay Palmer to an NFL executive five months ago. Mr. Goodell and the league office have insisted they didn't see the brutal punch until this week when TMZ released the video.

But the law enforcement official allowed The Associated Press to listen to an April 9 voicemail from an NFL office number that confirmed the video had been received. According to the AP report, a woman expresses thanks and says, "You're right. It's terrible."

When asked by AP about the voicemail Wednesday, league officials still said no one had seen the video before this week.

Hours after fans began sharing the video posted by TMZ Monday, the Ravens cut the All Pro running back and the NFL made his suspension indefinite.

It is impossible to believe no one at the NFL had seen the video before this week. The claim was already suspect before the AP's news report Wednesday afternoon. The league has vast resources and power, and it had been clear for months that Ms. Palmer -- who is now married to Mr. Rice -- had been knocked out in the elevator in February.

Even without the elevator video, Mr. Goodell could have given Mr. Rice more than a two-game suspension. But wouldn't the league want to make sure it had all evidence in hand before deciding Mr. Rice's punishment? If Mr. Goodell actually wanted to punish Mr. Rice, that is.

Mr. Goodell hires private investigators when he wants to dig up something on a player or team. That is what he did when the Vikings accused the Saints in 2010 of putting a defensive bounty on Brett Favre in the NFC championship game. Mr. Goodell was ruthless in his pursuit of the Saints.

When Mr. Goodell suspended Coach Sean Payton for the entire 2012 season because of the bounty scandal, the commissioner essentially said it was because Mr. Payton should have done more.

The Goodell statement from March 2012 reads in part: "The violations were compounded by the failure of Coach Payton to supervise the players and coaches and his affirmative decision starting in 2010 (a) not to inquire into the facts concerning the pay-for-performance/bounty program even though he was aware of the league's inquiries both in 2010 and 2012..."

Similar language could apply to Mr. Goodell now. At best, he failed to get all the evidence available on Mr. Rice's assault of Ms. Palmer before he suspended him in late July for only two games. At worst, Mr. Goodell purposefully ignored the video and hasn't been truthful about the league's knowledge of its existence.

Whichever it is, the league needs new leadership. The owners ought to want a better representative for the game, and the fans deserve it.

Mr. Goodell sounded self-righteous when he handed down severe punishments for the Saints in 2012 -- punishment that was excessive and damaging.

"We are all accountable and responsible for player health and safety and the integrity of the game," he said in a statement then. "We will not tolerate conduct or a culture that undermines those priorities. No one is above the game or the rules that govern it. Respect for the game and the people who participate in it will not be compromised."

Mr. Goodell should be held to that standard now. And if so, he won't be commissioner any longer.


http://www.nola.com/opinions/index.ssf/2014/09/hold_roger_goodell_to_standard.ht...

What did the Commissioner know, and when did he know it?

The other question is how much did the Ravens know?  As I said before, anyone with the sense God gave a snail knew there had to be video from inside the elevator.  There maybe more people resigning than Goodell before the stink is off of this story.

I totally got that one...Ha!

gimmekeef wrote on Sep 11^th, 2014 at 10:25am:


county prosecuter said it the result would have been a two year probation for a first time offender. the billion dollar casino that it occured in closed its doors last week

Goodell has a lot of douche baggage.

For the unversed, I was channeling Howard baker.

The media likes to pretend all they do is original.  Oh, that media.  The "liberal bias" is no more than a thought crime, but that media just can't get more uninformed and selfish.  Check it, bleeds......

http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/11/us/nfl-ray-rice/index.html?hpt=hp_c2
"What we don't know for certain is what the NFL knew about the incident and when the league knew it."

GK you know I feel weird seeing Cincy in 1st, but this year, it seems inevitable. That said, Miller's a runner - it would take a facemask or launched hit to draw a flag as he's fighting for yards. Kind of a weird "flow" to the game with all the turnovers and flags - RTP on Upshaw (first drive, should have led to a punt and Ravens taking over around midfield), defenseless receiver (M. Mitchell, should have led to 3rd and goal instead of 1st and 2 yards to goal). Troy's hit didn't do much since Owen Daniels held on, and BAL was close so it was only a half the distance penalty. Agree on your rules on Thursday night games and overall player safety/quality - how many Thursday night games do we have to see where the teams are not in sync?? It honestly lacked traditional PIT-BAL feeling, because, other than the flow of the game, it was just mediocre quality (field goal fest). Sunday night in November should be fun, I'm sure both teams will be around 1 or 2 back of Cincy around then.

PS Bell is a good one - I foresee a career like Corey Dillon's (albeit on a team that's not a constant bottom-dweller).

There goes our perfect season.

http://espn.go.com/boston/nfl/story/_/id/11514522/adrian-peterson-minnesota-viki...

Minnesota Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson has been indicted by a Montgomery County, Texas, grand jury on charges of reckless or negligent injury to a child and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. The team deactivated him for Sunday's home game against the Patriots.

Adrian Peterson's attorney said Friday that Peterson used the same kind of discipline with his child that he experienced growing up in east Texas.
Peterson's attorney, Rusty Hardin, issued a statement Friday saying his client's conduct "involves using a switch to spank his son." According to a report by Sports Radio 610 in Houston, Peterson removed the leaves of a tree branch, which he referred to in a police report as "a switch," to strike the child.

"This indictment follows Adrian's full cooperation with authorities who have been looking into this matter. Adrian is a loving father who used his judgment as a parent to discipline his son," Hardin said in his statement. "He used the same kind of discipline with his child that he experienced as a child growing up in east Texas. Adrian has never hidden from what happened."

Hardin said Peterson has cooperated fully with authorities and voluntarily testified before the grand jury for several hours.

"Adrian will address the charges with the same respect and responsiveness he has brought to this inquiry from its beginning," Hardin said. "It is important to remember that Adrian never intended to harm his son and deeply regrets the unintentional injury."

The Vikings released a statement earlier Friday saying they're in the process of gathering information about Peterson's legal situation and deferred comment to Hardin..

Last October, Peterson's 2-year-old son died in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, after being allegedly assaulted by a man who was dating the boy's mother. Peterson learned only two months earlier that he was the boy's father. The man who assaulted the boy, Joseph Robert Patterson, was charged with murder and manslaughter.

The Houston station, citing law enforcement sources, said Peterson told police that the incident -- he referred to it as a "whooping" -- occurred in Spring, Texas, in May as punishment for his son pushing another one of Peterson's children. The boy suffered cuts and bruises to areas including his back, buttocks, ankles and legs.

Peterson reflected on his loss in an August interview with ESPN.com Vikings reporter Ben Goessling.

"It's just made me stop taking things for granted," said Peterson, who turned 29 in March. "Life is short. You never know. You just want to take advantage of the time you do have."

Peterson, in his eighth NFL season, rushed for 10,115 yards through his first seven full seasons as a pro, the fifth-most for any running back in NFL history during that specific time frame.

sirmoonie wrote on Sep 11^th, 2014 at 9:10am:

You should apologize for how bad the Steelers suck.

toted an ass whoopin'