Timeline
This all starts after Valentines Day 2014. February 15, 2014, Ray Rice and then-fiancee Janay Palmer were at a Casino. They were involved in an altercation, and when police came, both were arrested and charged with simple assault.
Four days later, on February 19th, TMZ leaked a video that showed Rice dragging an unconscious Palmer out from the elevator. This leads to a public uproar due to the disturbing image of a woman being dragged around.
On March 27th, Rice was charged with third-degree aggravated assault, while the charge against Palmer was dropped. The next day, on March 28th, Ray Rice and Janay Palmer Rice married.
On June 16th, Commissioner Roger Goodell met with Ray and Janay Rice. On July 24th, the NFL handed down a two-game suspension for Ray Rice.
A week later, on July 31st, Ray Rice held a press conference in which he explained his actions as "inexcusable" and showed regret while also saying how difficult it would be for him to live with it for the rest of his life.
After the lenient two-game suspension was the target of memes all over the internet and heavy criticism, on August 28th Roger Goodell announced a harsher punishment for domestic violence, six game for the first offense and a full year for the second offense, with the ability to appeal. This new rule was not to be applied to Ray Rice.
On September 8th, TMZ released a second video, this one from inside the elevator. This showed Ray violently punching Janay and knocking her unconscious, letting her head hit the rail, then dragging her out.
On September 10th, TMZ reportedly proved that they had sent the second video to NFL offices back in April, even though Goodell vehemently denied it. This spurred an individual investigation, assigned September 10th.
Event Breakdown
Now, the first issue I will address is the incident itself. In no circumstance is it ever acceptable for a man to lay his hands on a woman, even in the slightest way. That is just weak. In the elevator, it showed Janay approaching Ray, but she had not hit him yet. According to multiple reports from people at the casino, the argument started long before the two had gotten in the elevator and Ray Rice had even spat in Janay's face. So with his frustration boiling over, Ray Rice punched Janay with full force to the head, knocking her unconscious, and her head hitting the side rail of the elevator on the way to the ground. The second takeaway from the incident is Ray Rice dragging his now-wife out from the elevator. It has been said that both were intoxicated, but that is no excuse for an NFL running back, a position that is one of the strongest on the team, could not have picked up Janay and at least had the decency to carry her out. Janay herself is not a big woman, it could have been done.
As far as the ramifications go, I could not find a previous suspension handed down from the NFL to a player due to domestic violence. Recently, Chad Johnson (Ochocinco) was involved in an incident, but that led to him being cut from the Miami Dolphins and he did not latch onto any other team so no suspension was given. However, considering most PED violations and substance abuse suspensions are about four games, it gave the NFL a bad look by just giving a domestic violence case a two game suspension. People over the internet were saying "It's better to hit the wife than hitting the blunt" and other nonsense, and the NFL was put in an awkward spotlight. This led to the harsher punishment announced by Goodell later, after the Ray Rice suspension was finalized.
During Rice's press conference, many reporters asked Ray to describe briefly what had happened in the elevator that led to him dragging out Janay, because at that time, the first video was the only one that the public knew about. Rice refused to answer those questions, saying he was trying to move forward.
The second video changed the entire landscape of this situation. The second video, the video inside the elevator, showed the actual abuse by Ray Rice. Because of the nature of the crime of domestic violence, along with the video showing Ray dragging Janay, the public disgust towards Ray Rice was already probably at about an 8 out of 10. After the second video, it was at a 10 out of 10 because it was absolutely the most sickening thing ever. This video also is what led to Rice being released from the Baltimore Ravens and indefinitely suspended from the NFL (On September 8th, at approximately 1 o'clock p.m CT).
Here is where the trickle down effect began. After TMZ leaked the video from inside the elevator, the question quickly became, "How could the NFL just give a two game suspension for such a disgusting action?"
Well, Roger Goodell and the NFL reacted by saying they had not seen this video up until September 8th, when all the rest of the public saw it. Goodell said that when they did finally see the video, they acted swiftly in raising the suspension from two games to indefinite. However, TMZ said all along that the NFL knew of this video PRIOR to the original two game suspension.
On September 10th, at approximately 5 o'clock central time, TMZ confirmed to the Associated Press that indeed, they had sent the video to the NFL offices in April, and had even got a verbal acknowledgment from somebody is office that they had received and seen it. This immediately got #FireGoodell trending on twitter across the nation and put all of the heat on the NFL. The NFL later announced that Former FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III will conduct an independent investigation Ray Rice incident and Mueller’s investigation will be overseen by NFL owners John Mara of Giants and Art Rooney of Steelers. They also said the final report will be made public.
What this means for Ray Rice:
Ray Rice for sure will not see the football field during the 2014 season. However, after serving a one year suspension, I believe he should be allowed to redeem himself as a person and resurrect his career.
Here is why: What Ray Rice did was a very heinous act and by no means am I trying to diminish it.
But early in 2009, then-Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth was convicted of DUI Manslaughter. This means not only was he irresponsible enough to get behind the wheel while intoxicated, but he took an individuals life. He was subsequently suspended for the 2009 season, then allowed back into the NFL in 2010.
Last year, in 2013, Cowboys defensive lineman Josh Brent went through a similar situation as Stallworth, as he was driving while intoxicated and it cost him the life of his teammate and friend riding with him. Brent missed the 2013 season fighting legal battles, then was suspended for 10 games in the 2014 season, but then will be allowed back on the field after that.
Also, in July of 2007, quarterback Michael Vick was charged in a dogfighting scandal. He served two years in prison, as well as a short suspension from the NFL, but then was allowed back in the league to resurrect his image and career (He played well and not only cashed in on a huge contract with the Eagles but is still in the NFL on the New York Jets)
So my bottom line is, if players that took the lives of other individuals and other living creatures were allowed a second chance, a man that physically harmed another individual should definitely be allowed that chance. The reason why the public has turned so strongly against Rice is because of the disturbing visual evidence. Had a bunch of dead dogs, or the body of the man killed by Stallworth been shown in brutal condition, people probably would not have forgave them. As bad as domestic abuse is, it is not worse than taking somebodies life. I think people should be more objective and see the nature of the crime and what has been accepted in the past, then make longterm judgements. Now, had those incidents of Stallworth, Brent, and Vick led to them being expelled from the league, i would have no problem saying Rice should never play again. But if the NFL can allow them to play again, Rice should also eventually get the chance.
Chris Brown Comparison
Also, many people have compared the incident with Rice to that of artist Chris Brown. I don't believe these two incidents are as similar as people make them out to be. In fact, the only similarity is that they both put there hands on women. Chris Brown, though he is signed by labels and stuff, represents his own self. When Chris Brown is in trouble, the headline reads, "Chris Brown did...."
On the other hand, when Ray Rice slips up, the headline reads, "Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice...."
This directly associates the Ravens and the NFL, since the Ravens are a part of the NFL, to the crime at hand. So since Rice is representing a multi-billion dollar company, he will be punished when he misrepresents it.
In Conclusion...
This one domestic violence incident has been the cause of so many other problems. If there is one positive to take out of all of this, it is that this incident has heightened the nation's awareness to the brutality of domestic abuse. Domestic abuse is absolutely unacceptable and in no way should be tolerated. It should be dealt with in severe fashion. In the days coming, more facts will come out about the Ray Rice situation, as well as exactly what the NFL knew. This could have ramifications on Commissioner Goodell, as well as the reputation of the NFL.
Another thing to keep an eye on: Even after all of this regarding Ray Rice, the NFL has two current pending domestic violence cases they need to deal with: Ray McDonald of the San Francisco 49ers and Greg Hardy of the Carolina Panthers, both who played in week 1.
*Sidenote
**Janay Palmer Rice has constantly been at the side and defense of Ray Rice, though she was the victim. Of course nobody knows why, it could be a various amount of reasons ranging from true love and support to her being scared or needing financial stability or other things. She even took to social media after the second video was released and blasted the media for invading their privacy and ruining their lives.
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