Tag: charges

Misdemeanor charges against Michael Thomas were dismissed, says attorney

Misdemeanor charges stemming from a Nov. 2023 arrest against Michael Thomas were dropped on Wednesday, his attorney told ESPN:

Michael Thomas can move on. His attorney Daniel Becnel told ESPN’s Katherine Terrell on Wednesday that misdemeanor charges stemming from a Nov. 2023 arrest had been dropped due to insufficient evidence, meaning the former New Orleans Saints wide receiver can focus on the next step for his NFL career.

Thomas was charged on counts of simple battery and criminal mischief,  having been accused of shoving a contractor and throwing a brick at his windshield over a parking dispute outside his home in Kenner, La. But Becnel says there was no proof of an altercation.

“There was no assault, there was no brick thrown,” Becnel told Terrell. “This was a dispute between a contractor and his employees, who were blocking his driveway and who were parking and walking on his grass. It came to a head one day, but there was no criminality involved. That’s obvious by the lack of any type of civil suit, the lack of any type of property damage, the lack of any medical issues and the lack of any physical evidence that criminal action took place.”

Thomas was released from custody the same night he was arrested by the Kenner Police Department, but he suffered a season-ending knee injury in the Saints’ road game with the Minnesota Vikings just two days later.

Now a free agent, Thomas is eager to move on with his career and find a fresh start in a new city on a new team. It’ll be interesting to see where the 2019 Offensive Player of the Year ends up, and whether he’ll be suiting up against his former teammates in 2024.

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Kenner PD releases statement, announces charges in Michael Thomas arrest

The Kenner police department announced charges against Michael Thomas after arresting him Friday night:

The Kenner police department announced charges against New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas after arresting him Friday night, according to a press release shared by WDSU’s Travers Mackel. Thomas faces counts of simple battery and criminal mischief — both misdemeanors — after an altercation with a contractor working on a home in his neighborhood.

Thomas was booked and released without incident, and he is expected to play in the Saints’ road game with the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

The release from Kenner police clarified that these charges will be adjudicated in the city mayor’s court. In Louisiana, simple battery carries a fine of up to $1,000 and/or imprisonment for up to six months. The second misdemeanor for criminal mischief may result in a fine of up to $500 and/or six months’ imprisonment. Neither charge has a minimum sentence.

We’ll have to wait and see how the legal process plays out here, but it doesn’t appear that Thomas will be unavailable for the Saints in the foreseeable future.

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Saints WR Michael Thomas arrested in Kenner, expected to play vs Vikings

Saints issue statement after Michael Thomas arrested in Kenner; WR expected to play vs. Vikings

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas was arrested by Kenner police on Friday afternoon, with the team sharing a brief statement once news broke late Friday evening. Thomas was involved in an altercation with construction contractors who were allegedly trespassing and blocking access to his property while working on a neighboring home.

Per a Saints team spokesman, “We are aware of the incident and are gathering information.”

This sounds like it was more of a privacy/property dispute than anything, but this is a fluid situation. Kenner PD has not announced any charges, and Thomas is expected to play Sunday, per NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill. We’ll keep an eye out for more details once they become available.

Update: A press release from Kenner PD says Thomas was charged with simple battery and criminal mischief, both misdemeanors.

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Saints listed as the best fit for controversial free agent DE Frank Clark

Bleacher Report listed the Saints as the best fit for controversial free agent defensive end Frank Clark, who is currently on probation following Los Angeles gun charges:

The New Orleans Saints have plenty of salary cap resources to work with, and it would make sense for them to invest in a new pass rusher after letting Marcus Davenport walk away in free agency. And one suggestion comes from Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine, who suggested New Orleans as one of the best fits for recently-released Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Frank Clark:

When the Chiefs decided to release Frank Clark, he immediately became one of the best edge-defenders in a shallow free-agent class. Clark is 29 years old and his regular season numbers aren’t staggering, but he’s racked up 10.5 sacks in four playoff runs with the Chiefs.

He’s a savvy veteran with a skill set many teams would love to add, even if he’s just a rotational player.

The Saints are a team that could use him as a starter. Marcus Davenport had a down year last season, but they will still miss him in their rotation. With Cam Jordan entering his age-34 season, it might be a good idea for the Saints to add a veteran like Clark who can take some of his snaps and help both players sustain success.

Clark’s production has trailed off with age, which partially led to his release by Kansas City, but he also brings a lot of off-field distractions. Before being dismissed from Michigan’s college team due to 2014 domestic violence charges, he pled guilty to 2012 felony home-invasion charges. The Seattle Seahawks overlooked those incidents to pick him in the second round of the 2015 draft, only to trade him to the Chiefs in 2019. He’s currently serving probation following gun charges in Los Angeles stemming from a March 2021 arrest, which led to a two-game suspension last season. He has a lot of baggage.

But back to the football fit. Clark generated 56 quarterback pressures last year for Kansas City, which would have led the Saints by a healthy margin (Cameron Jordan paced the team with 37). He’s undersized by their standards — despite being listed at 272 pounds, he said last summer that he was playing at about 250 pounds. Jordan and the other New Orleans defensive ends all tip the scales at roughly 285 pounds. Dennis Allen has used lighter pass rushers before, but size has been a point of emphasis for him as of late.

Maybe that changes if the Saints like Clark’s fit in their defense. They were willing to overlook sexual misconduct charges against defensive end Carl Granderson, who missed part of his rookie year while serving time in a Wyoming prison, and their public pursuit of quarterback Deshaun Watson — despite dozens of accusations of sexual misconduct — was well-documented. They signed free safety Marcus Maye last year knowing he’s facing an eventual suspension from a Feb. 2021 DUI charge in Florida, and running back Alvin Kamara remains in their plans with a suspension looming after his arrest in Las Vegas a year ago. The Saints have shown us that there’s a lot they’ll overlook if they feel a player can improve their on-field product.

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District attorney drops gun charge against Saints’ Marcus Maye from Sept. 22 arrest

The Jefferson Parish district attorney’s office won’t pursue a gun charge against Saints safety Marcus Maye following his Sept. 2022 arrest, citing insufficient evidence:

The Jefferson Parish district attorney’s office dropped a gun charge against New Orleans Saints safety Marcus Maye following his September 2022 arrest, according to WDSU’s Travers Mackel. District attorney Paul D. Connick Jr.’s office cited insufficient evidence to support the charge of aggravated assault with a firearm that allegedly occurred last summer in a road rage incident.

Maye signed a three-year contract with the Saints last March, which he recently restructured to ensure he’ll be on the team for at least another year (and he’ll likely see the deal through to the end). Though this case has been dismissed, Maye could still be suspended in the fall depending on how a Florida DUI charge dating back to February 2021 is resolved. ESPN’s Katherine Terrell reports that Maye’s next court date in that case is March 29.

Injuries limited Maye to just 10 of 17 games last season, and availability is going to continue to be a question for him.

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Alvin Kamara pleads not guilty in Las Vegas court; trial scheduled during Saints training camp

Alvin Kamara pled not guilty on all charges in Las Vegas court, but his trial has been scheduled during New Orleans Saints training camp:

We’re going to have to watch this subplot a while longer. Alvin Kamara and three other men pleaded not guilty to all charges in a battery case in Las Vegas on Thursday, and the trial was scheduled for this summer — during New Orleans Saints training camp.

Kamara’s attorney attempted to schedule it for June but was unable to find a trial date that worked for all parties. He and three others were indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit battery and battery resulting in substantial bodily harm in a February 2022 beating outside a Las Vegas nightclub.

Kamara is scheduled to be back in court on July 31. Last year, Saints rookies reported for camp on July 19 with veterans like Kamara arriving a few days later, and their first team practice began on July 27. Practices open to fans started on July 30. That’s a typical schedule for New Orleans, so Kamara is going to miss some time during training camp dealing with his legal issues.

And an NFL suspension will likely follow regardless of the outcome. The league has a precedent of sidelining players for about six games whether or not they have been found guilty; violent charges like this are still a violation of the league’s personal conduct policy. The Saints need to make moves at running back no matter Kamara’s availability, and being without him early in training camp and possibly for a month or more in the regular season gives any new additions plenty of time to make a good impression.

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Opinion: Saints trading for Deshaun Watson would not be worth celebrating

The Saints trading for Deshaun Watson would not be worth celebrating. At best, the allegations against him could be spun as a distraction the team can’t afford:

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero set off a social media frenzy Sunday morning by reporting the New Orleans Saints have submitted a trade offer for Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, with a meeting expected to occur soon in which Watson will choose whether to waive his no-trade clause for New Orleans. Landing a top-five quarterback in the prime of his playing career would be a coup for the Saints, but Watson brings so much serious baggage that it shouldn’t have gotten to this point.

Critics love to say that a team can’t sign Colin Kaepernick because of the distraction his social activism would bring, or that Tim Tebow didn’t get a fair shake (he got several, actually) because of the circus that follows him everywhere. Watson has been credibly accused of a years-long predatory pattern of behavior by 22 different women all describing the same events. That wasn’t enough for the courts to criminally charge him. But it’s a situation the American criminal justice system isn’t built to resolve, with only a fraction of those accused of sexual assault ever actually seeing jailtime. A lack of physical evidence with which to levy criminal charges doesn’t signify innocence no matter how much Watson and his agent are trying to tell people it does.

There have been a lot of snide remarks asking why it’s important to take a moral stand on this right now. It’s because we risk letting the allegations against Watson be glossed over by a long and successful career, just like happened with Ben Roethlisberger and Kobe Bryant and Chauncey Billups. The gravity of the misconduct Watson is accused of demands we speak out against it now, six months from now, and six years from now. Downplaying it or ignoring it because he’s good at throwing a football is disrespectful to sexual assault survivors everywhere.

And the Saints have shown us they’re willing to live with that by taking the process this far. It lines up with their past behavior in overlooking the accusations against Jameis Winston and Carl Granderson, who actually served time in a Wyoming prison prior to his return to the team. They may have a female owner who promotes activism in a wide array of fields. But they’re in the business of winning football games, not taking moral stands, and they feel trading for Watson would give them the best opportunity to do that. We’ll see how it plays out.

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Report: Saints have submitted trade offer for Texans QB Deshaun Watson

Report: Saints have submitted trade offer for Texans QB Deshaun Watson, likely to meet with him soon

Here we go. The New Orleans Saints have submitted a trade offer for Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero report, as have the Carolina Panthers. Other teams are also in pursuit of Watson, who was cleared of criminal charges stemming from allegations of sexual misconduct by 22 women in the Houston area on Friday. Pelissero adds that the trade package to acquire Watson is substantial, including three future first round draft picks.

Watson may have been cleared of criminal behavior, but that’s the case for the vast majority of sexual assault cases in America. It doesn’t mean he didn’t do anything wrong. And he clearly feels he is innocent of wrongdoing. That’s not the behavior of someone who is repentant or looking to avoid these situations in the future.

Let’s be real: there’s a cost to the Saints acquiring Watson beyond the trade package Houston might receive. Bringing him in would be a slap to the face of every sexual assault survivor and those around them in the fanbase. And the Saints know that. They’re betting that they can take the public relations hit, win a lot of football games, and gloss over all of this. When purely evaluating what Watson has done on the field, he’s a top-five quarterback in the prime of his career.

The Saints are obviously willing to pay the price for that. Watson does have a no-trade clause which he will exercise in meeting with teams prior to any trade can be agreed upon. If he isn’t interested in going to New Orleans, he won’t go there. But if the Saints are willing to get this deep in the process then they must be prepared to do whatever it takes to make him happy. Stay tuned.

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With sentencing complete, Mychal Kendricks is free to return to NFL

Now that he has been sentenced on insider trading charges, former Seattle Seahawks linebacker Mychal Kendricks can resume his NFL career.

Former Seattle Seahawks linebacker Mychal Kendricks is now available to return to his career as an NFL football player.

“Free-agent LB Mychal Kendricks was sentenced today to one day in jail, three years of probation, and 300 hours of community service for his 2018 guilty plea on insider-trading charges,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter tweeted Thursday. “Kendricks is now free to resume his NFL career immediately and he wants to continue playing.”

Kendricks was originally selected by the Eagles in the second round of the 2012 NFL draft out of Cal. After six seasons in Philadelphia, he requested a trade and was ultimately released. He then signed with the Browns but was cut shortly thereafter when his insider trading charges came down. Kendricks next signed with Seattle, where he played the 2018 and 2019 seasons. He spent 2020 mostly on the Seahawks practice squad.

The veteran linebacker could be a valid option for the Seahawks once again when the timing and price are right.

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NFL suspends wide receiver Antonio Brown for 8 games

Free-agent, wide receiver Antonio Brown has been suspended by the NFL for the first eight games of the 2020 season.

As was expected for several months now, embattled free agent wide receiver Antonio Brown has been officially suspended by the NFL.

First reported by the Washington Post’s Robert Klemko, the league handed Brown a lofty eight-game suspension due to violating the league’s personal conduct policy. Brown had recently pleaded no contest to battery charges against a truck driver in Florida, which landed him a lengthy probation sentence.

Now the league has weighed in with its own judgment on the matter.

Unfortunately for Brown, this may not be the end of discipline from the NFL. The legal buck doesn’t stop with the battery charges, as Brown still faces a sexual misconduct lawsuit.

 

This very well could be the final nail in the coffin of what was a Hall of Fame-caliber career for Brown. A free agent since last September, Brown was linked to Seattle as a potential landing spot and was even seen working out with quarterback Russell Wilson. Now that he is suspended, any chatter about him coming to Seattle will likely be put to bed for good.

With his legal issues, volatile personality, and now a suspension that will likely last at least half the 2020 season, Brown is far too toxic for any team to sign. If he is signed, it will be by a desperate team late in the year.

Of course, none of this might even matter for Brown as he apparently retired from the league . . . for a second time. Although, given his recent track record, it’s hard to say for certain if he will want to stay that way.

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