NFL Star Adrian Peterson Charged With Child Abuse

Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings running back, was booked and released from a Texas jail on a child abuse charge early Saturday. 

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Peterson was processed at the Montgomery County jail and released on a $15,000 bond. He is charged with reckless or negligent injury to a child age 14 or younger for allegedly spanking one of his sons with a wooden switch in May.

Peterson will not play in Sunday’s game against New England. The Vikings announced that he would be benched for the game shortly after news of the indictment broke on Friday. 

Vikings executive vice president and general manager Rick Spielman spoke on the team’s stance Sunday.

“Friday night was the first we heard of the formal allegations against Adrian Peterson, and we decided, as an organization, that to deactivate him this weekend was in the best interest of everybody concerned,” he said. “We are, as an organization, still in the process of gathering information, and at the end of the weekend we will discuss what we will do going forward. You don’t want to make any knee-jerk reactions. All options are on the table. You can’t take any options off the table because we’re still gathering information.”

Peterson’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, spoke on his client’s case, “Adrian is a loving father who used his judgement as a parent to discipline his son. He used the same kind of discipline  with his child that he experienced as a child growing up in East Texas,” said Hardin.

He also noted that Peterson has been cooperative throughout the case saying, “It is important to remember that Adrian never intended to harm his son and deeply regrets the unintentional injury,” he said. 

Peterson’s uncle says that he will be making an official statement through his attorney but is unsure when that will come. 

If convicted Peterson could face up to two years in state jail and a $10,000 fine.