Adrian Peterson indicted for reckless/negligent injury to a child

[dcmissle]

The League office is paralyzed. They still have Hardy out there; it is almost inconceivable Goodell does anything to AP before Sunday.

If he has been cooperative as reported, I suspect the authorities would process him tomorrow. Or agree to him showing up after the game.

From a selfish standpoint, just what we don't need -- an enraged AP put out by being criminally charged.

 

[MarcSullivaFan]

If you hit a 4 year old with a stick, you can go die in a fire. Fuck him. If he plays in that game I don't know if I'll be able to watch NFL games anymore. Totally emotional reaction, yes.

 

[ifmanis5]

Warrant for arrest now issued. He is not yet in custody.

 

[riboflav]

At least AP admits to doing it (even if he claims its his Bible-given right to be a dick parent). That should be enough for Goodell to take action.

 

[Ed Hillel]

http://houston.cbslocal.com/2014/09/12/exclusive-details-on-adrian-peterson-indictment-charges/
 
Nice knowing you AP.

Holy shit, he's fucked. He's also a horrible human being.

 

[riboflav]

 
http://espn.go.com/boston/nfl/story/_/id/11514522/adrian-peterson-minnesota-vikings-indicted-child-case

 
Cools. So it's ok to whip a four-year old (it is just love after all) but doing the same thing to AP when he misbehaves would be at least a misdemeanor. Got it.

 

[E5 Yaz]

 
Cools. So it's ok to whip a four-year old (it is just love after all) but doing the same thing to AP when he misbehaves would be at least a misdemeanor. Got it.

 
Rusty's setting up the jury pool.

 

[DennyDoyle'sBoil]

TMZ and other reports say it was for "negligent" child abuse, and Peterson's lawyer says it was unintentional.  
 
That's really hard to square with the pictures and the report that he hit him with a switch, under traditional understandings of the words "negligent" or "unintentional."
 
I think what it must mean is not that the beating was unintentional.  Obviously, it was intentional, if the pictures are accurate.  I believe that since Texas allows corporal punishment, what "negligent" means in this context is that Peterson did not intend to injure the boy, beyond the amount of injury customarily associated with "proper" corporal punishment.
 
In other words, in states that permit corporal punishment, the question of "negligence" must relate to intent to injure as opposed to intent to hit, and here the grand jury was not convinced there was an intent to injure, just to hit -- as screwed up as that might sound.
 
(Just trying to harmonize the word "negligent" in this context, which I assume could be pretty confusing to nonlawyers and probably will be the subject of press confusion over the coming hours and days.)
 
Edit: typos

 

[dirtynine]

I really feel like we are watching the NFL die. Head trauma is the long-term, fatal illness; incidents like these are the opportunistic infections.

 

[Yaz4Ever]

Fuck me.  I thought AP was one of the good guys in the NFL.  Then I saw the pictures.  Deeply disappointed, but no longer shocked by anything.

 

[E5 Yaz]

I really feel like we are watching the NFL die. Head trauma is the long-term, fatal illness; incidents like these are the opportunistic infections.

 
Did you see the ratings for the Thursday night game?

 

[riboflav]

TMZ and other reports say it was for "negligent" child abuse, and Peterson's lawyer says it was unintentional.  
 
That's really hard to square with the pictures and the report that he hit him with a stitch under traditional understandings of the words "negligent" or "unintentional."
 
I think what it must mean is not that the beating was unintentional.  Obviously, it was, if the pictures are accurate.  I believe that since Texas allows corporal punishment, what "negligent" means in this context is that Peterson did not intend to injury the boy, beyond the amount of injury customarily associated with "proper" corporal punishment.
 
In other words, in states that permit corporal punishment, the question of "negligence" must relate to intent to injury as opposed to intent to hit, and here the grand just was not convinced there was an intent to injury, just to hit -- as screwed up as that might sound.
 
(Just trying to harmonize the word "negligent" in this context, which I assume could pretty confusing to nonlawyers and probably will the subject of press confusion over the coming hours and days.)

 
Yes, I think Harden's intent is to say the injuries were accidental even though the beating was willful.
 
Hopefully, some good will come from this and Texas will either be annexed or brought into the 21st century.

 

[Dogman]

A grand jury has indicted Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson with reckless or negligent injury to a child, and will not play in this Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots.
The team confirmed that Peterson had been deactivated.
 

http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2014/09/12/adrian-peterson-indicted-for-child-abuse/

 

[mpx42]

https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/510560246356779009
 
Vikings announce Peterson won't play on Sunday. No surprise.

 

[E5 Yaz]

 
Yes, I think Harden's intent is to say the injuries were accidental even though the beating was willful.
 
Hopefully, some good will come from this and Texas will either be annexed or brought into the 21st century.

 
Even the 20th would be progress

 

[riboflav]

 
Did you see the ratings for the Thursday night game?

 
Sure but these changes are gradual and generational. I think this could be the beginning of the end. See: boxing and horse racing.

 

[riboflav]

https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/510560246356779009
 
Vikings announce Peterson won't play on Sunday. No surprise.

 
I applaud the Vikings, but cue the tomato cans talk.

 

[dcmissle]

If the kid was 4, there is no excuse. There is not even things-got-out-of- hand excuse. I have a 4 year old . Even if you are a fervent believer in corporal punishment, that is too young to do anything approaching this. Even in Texas.

 

[dirtynine]

 
Did you see the ratings for the Thursday night game?

I bet that's what the league is telling itself too.

 

[Yaz4Ever]

If the kid was 4, there is no excuse. There is not even things-got-out-of- hand excuse. I have a 4 year old . Even if you are a fervent believer in corporal punishment, that is too young to do anything approaching this. Even in Texas.

Could not possibly agree more.

 

[mikeford]

The most fucked up part of the whole thing are AP's statements to the cops because he legit sounds like he has no concept that what he did was horrifically abusive to his child. 

 

[johnmd20]

 
Sure but these changes are gradual and generational. I think this could be the beginning of the end. See: boxing and horse racing.

 
I feel the NFL is experiencing peak popularity at this very moment. But it will take time, yes.

 

[rodderick]

Man, if those pictures were taken at least a week after Peterson hit the kid, it's beyond fucked up. He's lacerated all over.

 

[E5 Yaz]

 
Sure but these changes are gradual and generational. I think this could be the beginning of the end. See: boxing and horse racing.

 
The difference, I suspect, comes in 2 factors. Those sports have no college feeder system that's as popular, or even more so in many areas, than the pro equivalent. Also, their declines were tied in large part to fair-and-square play. These heinous NFL instances are about individual players and don't involve whether people are gambling on fixed events.
 
There's also something to be said about football helmets. Beyond the top 10% of players in the NFL, you might suspect you're seeing an NFL player on the street, but most go unrecognized. If the Rice and Peterson events happened to players we'd never heard of, the majority of fans would say "get rid of the clown" and go on as if nothing happened of any consequence.

 

[DennyDoyle'sBoil]

If the kid was 4, there is no excuse. There is not even things-got-out-of- hand excuse. I have a 4 year old . Even if you are a fervent believer in corporal punishment, that is too young to do anything approaching this. Even in Texas.

 
Right -- what the fuck could a 4 year old do to require corporal punishment ever?  I mean, if a 12 year old is playing with matches and nearly burns down the house and a parent decides that he needs to "teach the kid a lesson" to avoid the kid from burning the neighborhood down, I would say that parent needs some serious education about discipline and what works, but I wouldn't necessarily think the parent was a criminal for spanking in a corporal punishment state.  Just maybe not a particularly sophisticated person.
 
But a 4 year old?  
 
That said, clearly Texas permits parents to beat 4 year olds, and the charge of "negligent" child abuse seems to confirm that the grand jury decided Peterson only intended to beat the child, but accidentally went too far.  So, legally speaking, this is a "gone too far" case, apparently.  But, of course, that's only legally.  Certainly not morally.

 

[MarcSullivaFan]

If the kid was 4, there is no excuse. There is not even things-got-out-of- hand excuse. I have a 4 year old . Even if you are a fervent believer in corporal punishment, that is too young to do anything approaching this. Even in Texas.

Exactly. It's going to be interesting to see what happens if he is acquitted but he admits to conduct that the average American finds reprehensible. Have fun Rodger!

 

[E5 Yaz]

Jay Glazer @JayGlazer  ·  6m

Grand jury always had those horrific pics but didn't originally indict.

 

[MarcSullivaFan]

 
http://espn.go.com/boston/nfl/story/_/id/11514522/adrian-peterson-minnesota-vikings-indicted-child-case

Hardin is a piece of shit too. "My client was only perpetuating the same cycle of abuse that he was subjected too. Nothing to see here folks!"

 

[Yaz4Ever]

 
Jay Glazer @JayGlazer  ·  6m

Grand jury always had those horrific pics but didn't originally indict.

 

Cue the Celebrity Treated Differently chorus.

 

[SpacemanzGerbil]

The term, "Whoopin' Room," should really be the thing cherished here.

 

[E5 Yaz]

Hardin is a piece of shit too. "My client was only perpetuating the same cycle of abuse that he was subjected too. Nothing to see here folks!"

 
Hardin's job will be to play to the sensitivities of the potential jurors. A lawyer with a moral compass would be at a disadvantage in cases such as these

 

[axx]

Exactly. It's going to be interesting to see what happens if he is acquitted but he admits to conduct that the average American finds reprehensible. Have fun Rodger!

 
And that's why giving into the mob is such a bad thing. You can't win. I think the NFLPA needs to say something lest Goodell or whoever just give way longer suspensions than really needed just to get the mob off their backs.
 
 

Grand jury always had those horrific pics but didn't originally indict.

 
Sounds like they took their time with it. That's a bad sign for Peterson. What could he get?

 

[johnmd20]

Hardin is a piece of shit too. "My client was only perpetuating the same cycle of abuse that he was subjected too. Nothing to see here folks!"

 
He's a lawyer. Calling him a piece of shit is redundant. [ducks]

 

[E5 Yaz]

The term, "Whoopin' Room," should really be the thing cherished here.

 
"Just wait until one of your fathers gets home!"
 
The poor kid calls him "Daddy Peterson." It's a different world out there

 

[E5 Yaz]

Sounds like they took their time with it. That's a bad sign for Peterson. What could he get?

 
Nope. They didn't return an indictment until the second grand jury was impaneled.

 

[dcmissle]

Jay Glazer @JayGlazer  ·  [URL="https://twitter.com/JayGlazer/status/510561415137333248

https://twitter.com/JayGlazer/status/510561415137333248"]

link to tweet 6m [/url]

Grand jury always had those horrific pics but didn't originally indict.


That the prosecutor reportedly had to struggle to get the indictment speaks volumes. That you can get an indictment of a ham sandwich is only a mild exaggeration.

Expect to hear a lot of "spare the rod, spoil the child."

 

[Deathofthebambino]

Hang on, have to go switch my survivor pick to the Patriots. 
 
Sweet.

 

[AimingForYoko]

Holy fuck. This story snowballed in the past couple hours...

What an absolute piece of shit. That poor kid.

 

[Bongorific]

What a sack of shit. Peace out ADP

 

[amarshal2]

Delete

 

[axx]

That the prosecutor reportedly had to struggle to get the indictment speaks volumes. That you can get an indictment of a ham sandwich is only a mild exaggeration.
 

 
Well, it is Texas. Getting a indictment on corporal punishment is probably tough and speaks to the evidence they have.

 

[MarcSullivaFan]

 
Hardin's job will be to play to the sensitivities of the potential jurors. A lawyer with a moral compass would be at a disadvantage in cases such as these

I understand that. I am a lawyer too. I just reserve the right to say that anyone who makes that statement is a piece of shit. I have no problem with him defending Peterson, but that statement is abhorrent.

Also, while it might be effective in getting a jury to acquit him, in the big picture, that characterization could do Peterson a lot more harm than good. Might play in Texas, not so much in the board rooms of the companies he endorses.

 

[AimingForYoko]

Why is the NFL full of so many morons? I'm getting sick of reading and hearing about this shit constantly. It's way worse than any other sport by far.

It probably feels that way because there are so many players but yeah. Maybe too many blows to the head.

And I'm only half-joking there.

 

[DennyDoyle'sBoil]

Exactly. It's going to be interesting to see what happens if he is acquitted but he admits to conduct that the average American finds reprehensible. Have fun Rodger!

 
I think that's kind of interesting.  As I've been trying to say in the last couple of posts, the crime that he's charged with in Texas is relatively minor, albeit a felony, because it's a negligence crime.  That is, since Texas allows you to beat a 4 year old, so long as you don't go too far, what he's been charged with is doing something legal -- beating his 4 year old -- but accidentally ending up injuring him without meaning to.  That's as far as the grand jury would go, and apparently it took two bites at the apple to get them to go even that far.
 
Viewed through the relative lens of Texas law, he may very well get acquitted, or even if not, the punishment or plea probably won't be too severe, since there is no intent to injure here (or at least the grand jury didn't charge that).
 
The problem AP and the league have is that viewed in Maryland, or Vermont, this fine legal distinction won't mean crap.  A guy beat a 4 year old with a stick until he bled and had open wounds and welts.  Hardin has to defend his case under Texas law, but the fact that the state of Texas views it as relatively minor isn't really all that helpful to the league or the court of public opinion.

 

[rodderick]

 
He's a lawyer. Calling him a piece of shit is redundant. [ducks]

 
That's offensive. I'm a lawyer and a piece of shit, but I'm sure it's a mere coincidence.

 

[E5 Yaz]

Things I Never Thought I'd Do, Dept.: So after reading that AP might have as many as 7 kids, I googled for the athletes with the most kids. Calvin Murphy is said to have 14 kids through 9 different women. Travis Henry ... Travis Henry! ... is said to have 11, with 10 different women.
 
Mind-boggling

 

[Comfortably Lomb]

Why not just suspend players who are arrested with pay until the legal proceedings play out? Or you could reassign them to be waterboys or desk duty a la a police officer involved in killing a suspect.

 
Because the legal system isn't designed for speed. You could have players missing entire seasons for bogus charges.

 

[crystalline]

Hitting a 4 year old is beyond the pale.

I have friends who grew up in Korea and South Africa and are around 40, and tell stories about being beaten with switches in elementary school, resulting in painful welts for days or weeks. (I don't know anyone that grew up in East Texas). I am glad that did not happen to me.

 

[TomRicardo]

Why is the NFL full of so many morons? I'm getting sick of reading and hearing about this shit constantly. It's way worse than any other sport by far.

 
Are you kidding?  Baseball is filled with wife beaters.  Julio Lugo bounced his wife's head off a windshield a few times.  Theo was so impressed he gave him a four year contract.

 

[Devizier]

Rusty Hardin must be the go to lawyer for rich assholes in Texas.