Giants kicker Josh Brown domestic abuse case: What we know
Kicker Josh Brown remains a member of the New York Giants, although he was left at home as the team traveled to London ahead of Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Rams.
Brown, the Giants and the NFL have come under scrutiny since new documents from his May 2015 arrest were released to USA TODAY Sports and other outlet on Wednesday. In the King County (Wash.) Sheriff's Office documents compiled after Brown's arrest, Brown admitted had "been physically, emotionally and verbally" abusive toward his then-wife Molly Brown.
"I have abused my wife," Brown wrote in one journal entry.
Brown was not charged by prosecutors.
Why what action is the NFL taking in light of the new information?
The NFL announced Thursday that it had reopened its investigation into Brown, who was initially suspended for the first game of the season. Players who run afoul of the league’s domestic violence policy can receive up to a six-game suspension for a first-time offense, but Brown was suspended under the league’s personal conduct policy
The league said in a statement that the one-game ban was made minus the information released this week.
“NFL investigators made repeated attempts—both orally and in writing—to obtain any and all evidence and relevant information in this case from the King County Sheriff’s Office," Brian McCarthy, the NFL's VP of Communications, said in the statement.
The league hasn't ruled out Brown being put on the commissioner’s exempt list as the NFL reviews the new cache of documents, a person with knowledge of the situation told USA TODAY Sports, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation.
How are the Giants handling it?
New York Giants co-owner John Mara went on the radio Thursday and said the team was aware that Brown had been abusive.
“He certainly admitted to us that he abused his wife in the past,” Mara told WFAN New York. “What’s a little unclear is the extent of that.”
Even though the team knew about the abuse claims, the Giants re-signed him to a two-year, $4 million contract in April.
Later Thursday, the team announced that Brown was not making the trip to London.
“In light of the news reports regarding the documents released by the State of Washington yesterday, we think it makes sense to review this newly disclosed information and to revisit this issue following our trip to London,” the Giants said in a statement.
Police documents: Giants kicker Josh Brown admitted abuse
Does any of this change the status of his criminal case?
The case remains closed after King County Prosecuting Attorney declined to prosecute Brown, according to a memo obtained by USA TODAY Sports.
Dave Ryan, a senior deputy prosecuting attorney for the King County Prosecuting Attorney, wrote the assault charge could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt at trial "without Ms. Brown’s assistance providing incriminating testimony."
The investigation was left open for a year before it was closed on Sept. 14. Molly Brown expressed interest recently in pursing the charge, but Ryan wrote the bid to re-open the case was declined.
Did the new document pinpoint any other incidents?
Outside the May 2015 incident Woodinville, Wash. that initiated the sheriff’s investigation, the latest documents also described a confrontation before the Pro Bowl in Honolulu. Brown played in one Pro Bowl in January 2015.
“Molly refused to let Josh in, and eventually had to call NFL and hotel security,” an investigator wrote in a report. “Josh was escorted away from 'from Molly’s room and the NFL ended up having to put Molly and the kids up in a different hotel room where Josh would not know where they were.”
Ryan, the prosecutor in King County, said his office lacked jurisdiction to pursue Molly Brown's claims of abuse that occured outside Washington state.
