Peterson case is latest headache
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson’s booking on a child-abuse charge Saturday has created another crisis for the beleaguered NFL, already derided for not responding strongly enough to acts of domestic violence by its players.
It also has touched off a national debate about the role of corporal punishment in parenting.
In the eyes of a Texas grand jury, Peterson crossed the line when he repeatedly struck his son with a tree branch, or switch, in May. Peterson’s attorney has said he has not run from what happened — and that Peterson was inflicting the same discipline he endured as a child.
“Obviously, parents are entitled to discipline their children as they see fit, except when that discipline exceeds what the community would say is reasonable,” Montgomery County Prosecutor Phil Grant said about 12 hours after Peterson was booked and released from jail and released on $15,000 bond. He is charged with causing injury to a child age 14 or younger.
The Vikings deactivated him for Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots, and NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Saturday that Peterson’s case “will be reviewed under the NFL’s personal-conduct policy.” Glitch in drug agreement: Hours after the players’ union voted Friday to accept an NFL proposal on drug-policy changes that included HGH testing, the league says it is not a done deal. Player representatives to the union also voted for changes to marijuana testing, classification for amphetamines, punishment for driving under the influence, and neutral arbitration on appeals.
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in an e-mail: “There are unresolved issues. More negotiation ahead.” Aiello did not specify which issues are not resolved, but called them “significant.” Briefly: The Rams signed defensive end Robert Quinn, who led the NFC with a franchise-record 19 sacks last season, to a four-year contract extension through the 2019 season. ... Washington owner Dan Snyder says he supports NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, stating he “has always had the best interests of football at heart.”