Law&Crime Sidebar - Top 5 NFL Player Arrests Caught on Body Camera

Episode Date: December 25, 2023

From DUI crashes and reckless driving — to airplane drama and falling asleep behind the wheel — some of the NFL’s top players have found themselves in the spotlight for a very different reason. The Law&Crime Network’s Jesse Weber breaks down five recent times professional football players were arrested.PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW:If you’re ever injured in an accident, you can check out Morgan & Morgan. You can submit a claim in 8 clicks or less without having to leave your couch. To start your claim, visit: www.forthepeople.com/LCSidebarHOST:Jesse Weber: https://twitter.com/jessecordweberLAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokePodcasting - Sam GoldbergVideo Editing - Michael DeiningerScript Writing & Producing - Savannah WilliamsonGuest Booking - Alyssa Fisher & Diane KayeSocial Media Management - Vanessa BeinSTAY UP-TO-DATE WITH THE LAW&CRIME NETWORK:Watch Law&Crime Network on YouTubeTV: https://bit.ly/3td2e3yWhere To Watch Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3akxLK5Sign Up For Law&Crime's Daily Newsletter: https://bit.ly/LawandCrimeNewsletterRead Fascinating Articles From Law&Crime Network: https://bit.ly/3td2IqoLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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will keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't let your fears take hold of you as you dive into this addictive series. Love thrillers with a paranormal twist? The entire Oracle trilogy is available on Audible. Listen now on Audible. He does smell like alcohol. Yeah. So right now you're being arrested for the suspicion of DUI. Yeah, he's like, man, Jones, you don't know who I am. Pack me, Jeff. I bet, though. I play for the Saints, man.

Can. Two tragic DUI crashes, an intense altercation at the airport, sleeping behind the wheel of a car. We're breaking down five of some of the recent arrests of NFL players. Welcome to Sidebar, presented by Law and Crime. I'm Jesse Weber. So you pretty much know this already, but, No matter your status, no matter your celebrity, if you are accused of committing a crime,

you are about to enter the spotlight in a whole new way. And some former and current star NFL players have learned that the hard way. We are breaking down five major NFL arrests in recent history. And we're going to start in Las Vegas. Where former Raiders wide receiver, Henry Ruggs III, found himself involved in a deadly drunk driving crash that ended in a fiery collision. It is November 2nd, 2021, and 23-year-old Tina Tintor is out for a walk with her dog, Max. She and Max get back in her Toyota, RAV-4 SUV, and they head home. And she was about two miles away from that home when she was rear-ended by a Chevrolet

Corvette Stingray driven by Henry Rucks. When some of those first officers get to the scene, they realize just how bad this crash is. In the video, you can hear loud. hops as the tires explode from the heat. According to crash investigators, that Corvette was going more than 150 miles an hour when it slammed into the back of Tintore's moving SUV, which was going only about 40 miles an hour. SUV was pushed more than 500 feet and burst into flames. Tintor and Max were trapped inside, and according to the coroner,

they both died of thermal injuries, meaning they burned to death. Police body cam video shows fire crews trying to put out the fire with smoke billowing into the air. The damage to the SUV is so bad that police aren't able to tell at first how many people were inside, but officers start to get an idea of what happened. Yeah, security guard was over there. He said that he was over here. He saw the ride on the Corvette speeding pass, hitting the vehicle. He comes down here trying to get somebody out of the car, but he couldn't do it anymore because it was already on flames.

Right. Got rear-ended, absolutely obliterated. I mean, this thing was like an inferno when we got here. Like you could feel the heat from here. And then, yeah, there's a gun over in that car too, the Corvette. Is there anyone in the Corvette? better now. Yeah, a male and a female. They were hurt or they were living. I don't know how many people were in this, but it looked like the backseat passengers were killed. You know what I mean?

As more officers arrive on the scene, they shut down a long stretch of Rainbow Boulevard between Spring Valley and Tropicana. A few family members appear to have gotten to the scene just after the accident, even before police, and they give responding officers an idea of who's being loaded into the back of the ambulance. Now, Ruggs' girlfriend, Kiara Kilgo, Washington, was in the car with Ruggs when the crash happened. He had a leg injury. She sustained a severe arm injury.

Both were taken to the hospital. Authorities did a blood draw on Ruggs two hours after the crash, which showed he had a blood alcohol level of 0.161. That is more than twice the legal limit in Nevada. An investigation found that Ruggs and Kilgo, Washington, and, you know, and he said that Ruggs and had been at Topgolf earlier in the evening with other people. And if you look at the bill, there were 20 drinks on there, including for tequila.

And then from there, Ruggs and his girlfriend then went to a friend's home as well. Ruggs was the first draft pick for the Raiders when they came to Las Vegas, but the team cut him the day after the crash. And then in May of 2023, Ruggs pleaded guilty to one count of DUI resulting in death and one count of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter. During his sentencing hearing, Ruggs apologized, and spoke directly to Tintor's family. To the parents and family of Ms. Tintor,

I sincerely apologize for the pain and suffering my actions the morning of November 2nd, 2021 have caused you, your family, and those who knew and loved Ms. Tintor Max. I also let my family, teammates, and those who believe in me die with my actions. It hurts so many. Over the past 21 months, I've searched with the end to find the answers to explain myself as behavior on that day.

I have no excuse and pray that accepting responsibility and my guilty plea can allow me to begin the healing process and allow everyone involved to heal also. My actions are not a true reflection of me. I'm committed to create a greater awareness and educating others about the dangers that driving at an excessive speed and driving imperative can cause. With the support of my family, David Richard, and for his, I'm a place to be the father, and man, God created me to be. Thank you. Tina Tintor was originally from Serbia, and her mother wished to make a statement at sentencing, but due to the language barrier, she had someone else read it for her. On November 2nd, 2021, we were devastated with the news that our baby girl, Tina, and her best friend Max, were killed in the most tragic yet preventable way.

every parent's worst nightmare is to create a beautiful child just to have them taken away at the hands of another's negligence there are very few words to explain the feelings of losing a child it is a pain we feel every day when moments pass or we anticipate her presence just to be reminded that she will never be there to have only the memory of what it was like to hug and embrace her, knowing we will never be able to kiss her on the forehead or tell her how much we love her and how absolutely proud of her we are. Our Tina was special to us in that she was unlike any other. We pray that Henry Ruggs is blessed with the opportunity to be able to watch his beautiful daughter grow into the amazing woman she can be.

And we pray that this terrible accident inspires positive change in the world. And with that, Clark County District Judge Jennifer Schwartz sentenced rugs to three to ten years in prison. After those first three years, he will be eligible for parole. All right, we want to thank Morgan and Morgan for sponsoring this video. I think it's pretty clear from the stories that we cover that it is not always safe out there. When you're hurt, it can be pretty confusing. It can be scary and you really don't know where to turn. Well, Morgan and Morgan is actually the largest injury law firm in America.

And at a time when you already have so much to think about, they make it super easy for you. They have completely modernized the process because you can submit your claim, you sign contracts, you upload documents, you talk to your whole legal team all on your phone. That's it. Yeah, an attorney is going to review your case in just eight clicks. They also have 4,000 support staff that can help you too, which is amazing to think about. And in terms of price, well, you only pay them if you win. There's no upfront fee.

So if you're injured and you want to join the over three. million people that call them every year. You can submit a claim at www. www.4thepeople.com slash L.C. Sidebar or by dialing Pound Law, that's Pound 529 on your phone. Next, we're staying in Las Vegas where another professional football player was arrested, this in August of 2022. It is Tuesday, August 9th, around 7.30 in the morning. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officers found former NFL running back Marshawn Lynch asleep in a car not far from the Las Vegas strip. And the officers say Lynch, who once played for the Seattle Seahawks and Oakland Raiders

before they moved to Vegas, was behind the wheel of the car, which was basically undrivable. The front left tire and rim completely gone. Another wheel seemed ready to fall off. Now, in the body cam from the incident, officers can't seem to get a straight answer from Lynch about what he's doing there or what happened to his car. So they work on at least getting him out of the car,

which it turns out is unregistered. So here's the thing, okay? Right now, if you don't get out of the vehicle, you're going to be charged with obstructing investigations. It is a criminal offense and you will go to jail. Yeah, we're not going to explain it all to you. Because we're just not anymore. We've already told you several times. Roll over.

Roll over. Hands behind your back. No more gain. today. He does smell like alcohol. Yeah. So right now you're being arrested for the suspicion of DUI. Well, Lynch now faces charges of DUI liquor and or drugs, driving an unregistered vehicle and failing to drive in a travel lane.

But here is where the argument comes in, because according to court documents, Lynch had a blood alcohol level of 0.18, more than twice the legal limit to drive. His lawyers argue, though, he wasn't driving when officers got there. So can they really say he was driving under the influence? Prosecutors have countered that, saying under Nevada law, because he was in the driver's seat, he was in physical control of the car. Lynch has pleaded not guilty, and his trial was supposed to begin in November of 2023, but it has been moved to at least February of 2024. Okay, next we're in Ohio, where former Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Adam Pac-Man Jones was

arrested on September 11, 2023. While Jones was known for making major plays on the field in the NFL, he's also made a lot of headlines for his various run-ins with trouble, including reportedly 10 times where he was interviewed by police. He's had several suspensions, but let's break this one down for you. So it is a Monday just after 6 a.m., and Jones had boarded a United Airlines flight at the Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky International Airport. But the flight crew determines he is being unruly.

and they want them off the plane. And that means everyone else has to get off the plane, too. Now, Jones would end up saying that this altercation stemmed over the use of a charger on the plane. Body camera footage from several officers shows what happens when Jones gets onto the jetway. But, first of all, I ain't done that wrong. First of all, we're going to walk this way, right?

No, you ain't going to tell me where to walk. Am I up on the wrist? Listen, are you going to walk? I'm asking you a question. Am I up on the wrist? Yes or no. I told you. Do not touch me.

Listen. Am I born the rest? Yes or no. I'm not being detained. I'm not being detained. You have your idea on you? Listen, let me tell you so. Take your hand out of my face.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. You're not going anywhere. That much we had a drink. I ain't had one drink. It's 6 a.m. The f*** you talking about. F*** you ignorant. No.

So, listen, I ask one. In a minute. I asked the minute, I said, look, this is underground truth. I said, look, bro, the plug ain't working because I was trying to plug in my computer. This? I got, I got witnesses. I got 20 witnesses that was sitting there right beside them. Shut up. I didn't say .

Normally. We're going to have this discussion up top. You need to learn how to talk to a . Get your bags and let's go. Don't mind going to jail. Okay. You know that. But you got to learn how to go up to .

Okay. I'm the thing I'm saying is, I told me I said, I'm just trying to plug in my charger. I'm getting locked up for plugging in the charge. Do me a favor and put your wrist together so this don't hurt you, okay? I have one drink. Before all those passengers, board the plane, one of these senior officers checks in with the captain and flight attendants to find out what happened.

Their story? It differs from what Jones just told the officers. We were doing a live safety demo because the screens weren't working, so we had to get in the aisle and go ahead and start. Okay. While I started it, he then asked me if I could fix the charging court near his seat because it wasn't working for him. Okay. So, sir, we're doing a live safety demo.

Give me a one moment. Went through the demo finished it. Yeah. At the end of it, he unbucketed seatbelt while we were taxing, got underwent the seat and I just simply tapped him on his shoulder. Sir, can you please put your seatbelt on at this time just to be safe? Okay. And he turns up and looks at me and he says, It's your job to fix this. I need it fixed now and I was like, sir, this is not.

this is not a priority right now. We're on an active taxiway. Once we're in the air, then we'll get to it. I ended the conversation and walked away. Then he turns around, yells in the aisle. You need to come back here. And I said, sir, I need you to fix this. It's your f*** a job to fix it.

Yeah. I don't care if we have to go back to the gate. Yeah. And the flight attendant says that Jones wanted to make sure the people on the plane knew about his celebrity status. Yeah, apparently he's an NFL player, is that true? I don't know. Yeah, he's like, I'm Pac-Man Jones. You don't know who I am.

Packman, Joe. Is that his name? Yeah, he's been in trouble for him. Despite his insistence that he'd done nothing wrong and was being unfairly targeted, police did arrest Jones, and he was charged with misdemeanor alcohol intoxication, disorderly conduct, and terroristic threatening. As of now, as he awaits trial, he is. is allowed to travel for his bond conditions, but not through that airport that is at issue.

Okay, as we continue on talking about the arrests of major football stars, we want to go now to Kenner, Louisiana, it's outside of New Orleans, and it is October 23, 23, around 9 p.m. An officer pulls a man over in his driveway, putting him in handcuffs behind his car. That man in cuffs is Chris Olave, wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints. All right, so the reason I stopped you is because I got you going 70 down in so that's 35 over the speed limit. So, yeah. That's all me. I was just talking about it all.

Yeah, I get that, but you can't go over it more than double stealing. And Olave seems genuinely surprised that he's being arrested for speeding. Yeah, you can arrest me, man? Yep. Yeah. Yeah. My bad, though. I play for the Saints, man.

And? Yeah, long story short, I got him going at least 80 on Gianni, but on the gun, I got him seven. Now to be clear, reports indicate that he was cooperative with police. Olave's father, he's at the home, and when he continually questions the officer about why his son is going to jail, the officer had this to say. Should have made better choices. Police charged Olave with reckless operation of a motor vehicle. Press release revealed that this was the second time that he had been hit with a speeding

violation in Kenner since August. This charge carries with it a potential fine of $200 and or being locked up for up to 90 days if you are a repeat offender up to $5,000 and or 10 days to six months in jail. Well, we started with a deadly car crash. Let's end with another. And we end with the arrest of a star college football player who was in the process of qualifying for the NFL draft when he was arrested. On June 15, 2023,

Star University of Georgia defensive lineman, Jalen Carter, was celebrating the Bulldogs' National Championship win with friends and teammates in downtown Athens, Georgia. Several members of the football program got into cars to head to a nearby Waffle House around 2 a.m. Now, while Carter was in his own Jeep with a female acquaintance, two of his teammates and two female UGA students were in another SUV.

Now, one of those cars was speeding. when it left the road on a curve, going through a tree and power pole before landing in the parking lot of an apartment complex. Carter apparently saw the whole thing happen, but he reportedly had already been told that he could lead the scene. Well, that's why we're trying to get in touch with Jalen. That way, because obviously he either saw or he drove past. We need to find out what he saw that.

You know what I mean? Meanwhile, police, EMTs, firefighters, other first-res, responders, they are dealing with an absolutely catastrophic accident scene where 20-year-old UGA offensive lineman Devin Willock and 24-year-old recruiting analyst Chandler LaCroix ended up

dying in the crash. Two other passengers, another football player, and another staffer, they were injured but survived. It was later determined, though, that LaCroix, who was driving, had a blood alcohol level of 0.197 at the time of the crash, and police believed that she was going more than a hundred miles per hour when she lost control.

Investigators say alcohol impairment, reckless driving, and speed were significant factors. By the way, the first responders were having to do all of their work basically in the dark because the crash took out the power pole. Officers had to shut down a large stretch of road while they tried to figure out what happened. And one of the officers interviewed two other football players who had been nearby when the crash happened, but they didn't see it. They say that Jalen Carter called them to tell them the SUV had crashed. Carter ended up coming back to the scene to speak with the sergeant about what he witnessed.

Jalen? Sergeant Shulte with the police department. Sorry, we got to meet like this, bud. Yeah, I was coming. I was actually behind him. How far behind him were you? I was like, I don't know. Rough guess.

Put it in yards for me. How fast were you all going? what were you driving what kind of car is a buddy okay one of the jeep trucks or just a jeep jeep okay so you're following them to waffle house you're behind them I'm like so you're pretty close to them you're not too far behind them so you're pretty close to you're not too far behind them so you see them so you see them go through this, this pops, you go underneath it before this falls down, and you come to a stop on the other side of it. Yeah, that's when I call it down.

Did you call 911 after you called your teammates? Okay, so somebody that lives in the complex did that course? Yeah, I saw a lot of people come down. Okay. All right, so the next question I'm going to ask you, I need you to be honest with me, okay? Were you guys racing to Waffle House? Because I can tell you right now from look at the damage that car. They were moving.

Yeah, they was drawn. Okay. What makes you say that? Because I seen them downtown, but I wouldn't say like I was with them. I was just walking. It was like a knife, you know. Yes, sir. That's it.

You know who was driving that one? I think it was one of the girls. Okay. How do you know the girls? What do they do? It's part of football. Everybody part of football. Okay.

However, when police spoke with Carter over the phone a few weeks later, parts of his story, they seemed to change. That's when we started driving a little bit, and the turn came up, and then that's when I slowed down, because it's pretty dark on that road. I could see if it was an actual turn, so I slowed down to be safe. And then that's when I seen her car come past my car. She buried off the road. I feel like on the average speed.

Okay. And I looked behind to see where she was, and that's when I seen her soon past me. And then the current came and then she cleared off the road. And that's what happened. All right. When I seen she hit the pole, the pole started coming down and all my car is rolling. The lines hit my car.

So I just drove through it because it was parking at a time. So I just got through and made sure I was safe. And then I parked a little bit down. And then I got out of the car to go check out the team and try to see anybody need help. So now investigators believe that this was a street race gone wrong. And despite Carter's insistence that he wasn't racing the SUV and despite the fact that this seemed at first to just be a single car crash, Carter was charged with reckless driving and racing, which are both misdemeanors. The news broke while Carter was actually at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, but he returned to Athens that night. He was booked into jail.

He was released minutes later after posting a $4,000 bond. Carter, though, in the end, entered a deal with the prosecutors to avoid jail time and connection with the wreck. He pleaded no contest to the two misdemeanors and received 12 months probation. He had to pay a $1,000 fine, perform 80 hours of community service, and complete a driving course. Now, when the plea deal was announced, Carter's lawyer emphasized that investigators didn't believe Carter's actions caused the accident because otherwise he would have faced much more significant and serious charges. The Philadelphia Eagles ended up selecting Carter as the ninth overall pick in the NFL draft, and he made his NFL debut in September. But his legal troubles aren't over because Dave Willock's senior, Devin Willock's father, filed a $40 million lawsuit naming Carter as one of the defendants. And just two months later, Victoria Bowles, the former staffer who had survived the crash, filed a lawsuit against Carter and the University of Georgia Athletics Association.

Those lawsuits are still outstanding. That is all we have for you here on Sidebar, everybody. Thank you so much for joining us. Please subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, wherever you get your podcast. We very much appreciate it. I'm Jesse Weber. I'll speak to you next time. Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.