On Wednesday, the NFL announced a one-game suspension of Giants kicker Josh Brown without announcing the reason for it. According to James Kratch of NJ.com, the suspension arises from a May 2015 domestic violence arrest.
Via Kratch, public records from King County, Washington show that Brown was booked into the county jail and released on $2,000 bond. Brown and the alleged victim allegedly had quarreled on May 22, 2015, with Brown allegedly grabbing the victim’s wrist while the victim was picking up a phone. The victim then called 911 and claimed that an assault had occurred.
The victim had “redness” on the wrist and a small cut, according to the police report. The resolution of the criminal charge isn’t mentioned in the NJ.com report.
Somehow, news of Brown’s arrest never became public. Neither did the proposed suspension or the appeal process. At a time when the NFL is more sensitive to domestic violence than ever, the fact that the league, the Giants, and Brown managed to keep the incident quiet for more than a full year is surprising.
The fact that Brown played a full season despite the existence of the charges shows that the NFL decided in this specific case not to place Brown on paid leave. The fact that no one knew about the situation made it easier to not remove Brown from the field pending the resolution of the criminal charges and/or the internal punishment.
