NFL officials were sent the smoking-gun video of Ray Rice slugging his fiancée back in April — casting serious doubt on Commissioner Roger Goodell’s claim that none of his executives saw the footage until Monday, according to a damning new report.
At least one NFL employee confirmed she watched the video and said she was disgusted by what she saw. “You’re right. It’s terrible,” she told a law-enforcement official in a voicemail that confirmed the DVD arrived at the league headquarters in New York City on April 9, according to The Associated Press.
The official said he was not authorized to release the video but shared it anyway — unsolicited — because he wanted the NFL to have it before deciding on Rice’s punishment.
The NFL stood by its story on Wednesday that no league executives saw the footage before issuing Rice a paltry two-game suspension for knocking his girlfriend unconscious.
“We are not aware of anyone in our office who possessed or saw the video before it was made public on Monday,” the NFL said in a statement.
“We will look into it.”
That excuse likely won’t fly with Congress, which demanded an explanation from Goodell on Wednesday.
Members of the House Judiciary Committee and Sen. Dean Heller (R-Nevada) sent Goodell letters ripping his handling of the case and calling for the NFL to come clean.
“I fear the failure of the NFL to understand the scope and severity of this act of domestic violence has already led to significant damage for vulnerable members of society,” Heller wrote.
“By waiting to act until it was made public you effectively condoned the action of the perpetrator himself. I cannot and will not tolerate that position by anybody, let alone the National Football League.”
The House letter added, “To our knowledge the public has not been informed as to specifically how and in what context the request was made, and specifically how relevant law-enforcement responded. Nor has there been a full explanation as to whether the video was requested of others, such as Mr. Rice’s attorney or the casino where the incident occurred.”
Goodell claimed he never requested the surveillance video from the now-shuttered Revel Casino Hotel in Atlantic City because he thought it would interfere with the criminal investigation.
“We did not ask the Atlantic City casino directly for the video,” Goodell said in a letter to NFL team owners, according to ESPN. “Again, our understanding of New Jersey law is that the casino is prohibited from turning over material to a third party during a law-enforcement proceeding and that doing so would have subjected individuals to prosecution for interference with a criminal investigation.”
Meanwhile, a top New Jersey lawmaker said he wants more information about the sweetheart deal that let Rice off the criminal hook.
“This video and the violence it shows is extremely disturbing,” state Senate President Steve Sweeney said in a statement. “It is a vivid reminder that domestic violence is a serious problem that can’t be ignored and shouldn’t be treated lightly.
“That is why I am asking Acting Attorney General John Hoffman to review the decision-making process that allowed for pretrial intervention and to look at the law itself to see if it should be rewritten or revised.”
Rice was allowed to avoid jail time and probation by agreeing to a treatment program that includes anger management. He had faced up to five years in prison.