Domestic Violence In Sports

Words: 789
Pages: 4

Drug use, child abuse, domestic violence. These are all crimes that large numbers of professional athletes find themselves charged with. As fans of the sports, it is no secret to the public that these crimes occur more often than they should. The real question is why are these charges not being taken more seriously by sports leagues, teams, and associations? Athletes are often able to dodge consequences much too easily, allowing the trend of crimes to continue. Teams do not take cases of domestic violence as serious as they should, drug use and charges are a shock to nobody, and cases are easily appealed allowing players to dodge heavy consequences and continue their behavior.. The fact that these crimes carry so little negativity to the public and teams, on top of players almost …show more content…
Domestic abuse and drug usage are extremely common charges against professional athletes, yet it is taken lightly by leagues and teams across the nation. All-pro running back Adrian Peterson was charged with allegations of child abuse when it was discovered that he had beat his 4-year-old son, leaving multiple marks visible on the child’s body. After the case subsided he was presented with a four game suspension from the NFL; he appealed the punishment with the argument,"Mr. Peterson's discipline been lawfully assessed under the applicable disciplinary policies and practices in place prior to the new policy, he could not have lawfully been suspended for more than two games." (“Players Union Sues NFL. . .”) Policies are relatively loose allowing players to appeal their cases rather easily. Former running back for the Baltimore Ravens, Ray Rice, faced charges of domestic abuse a few years ago after a video surfaced of him knocking his ex-fiancee unconscious.