Ray Rice is in the news. Again. The heretofore unseen video (released by TMZ) of his assault on his fiancée Janay Palmer in the elevator of an Atlantic City, New Jersey hotel in February has everyone in an uproar. Again.
The first time everyone got into an uproar following the assault was when the NFL suspended Rice for TWO games for the assault. Everything was Roger Goodell's fault that Rice only got suspended for two games. It was idiotic, to say the least.
The action taken by Rice was a CRIMINAL ASSAULT taken against a woman (his fiancée) in a hotel elevator. This is clearly a case for the police and the district attorney to take the lead on, not the man's employer.
What did the DA decide on the case? The DA decided that Rice should be allowed to enter a "pre-trial" intervention program instead of facing criminal charges. According to CNN, the charges against Rice will be expunged in one year. Where is all the outrage at the DA?
When the new footage was released by TMZ, Rice was immediately released by the Baltimore Ravens and indefinitely suspended by the NFL. The leadership at the NFL did the right thing. When the the assault was suspected several months ago, the NFL followed the lead of the criminal justice system and then suspended Rice.
Now, when the video was released that actually confirmed the assault, the NFL did what the DA in Atlantic City needs to do. It needs to re-open the criminal assault investigation and put Ray Rice in jail. No more can he hide behind the fact that the woman is now his wife and cannot be made to testify against him. The video should be enough to convict Rice even without any testimony from her whatsoever.
But all the anger and accusations being thrown around need to be redirected at the New Jersey and Atlantic City criminal justice systems. Roger Goodell needs to do his job running the NFL, and the cops and DA need to prosecute crimes in Atlantic City.
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