Ray Rice got married to make sure his wife can’t testify against him in his trial. The legal term is spousal privilege, but the BSO’s legal team has informed me that in the state of New Jersey spousal privilege does not apply if the crime was committed against your spouse.
That doesn’t mean Rice’s wife Janay Palmer will cooperating with police, but legally she can’t use the fact they are married not to testify.
TMZ Sports broke the story — Rice allegedly assaulted Palmer on February 15 … and we posted surveillance video of him dragging her limp body out of the elevator. He was charged with third degree aggravated assault on Thursday.
According to ESPN … Rice and Palmer tied the knot Friday in a ceremony that had been planned for a couple of weeks.
We know what you’re thinking — they had a shotgun wedding so she couldn’t be forced to testify against Ray … it’s called spousal privilege, but it won’t apply here.
In New Jersey, (and many other states) spousal privilege does NOT apply if the alleged crime was committed against your spouse.
So … Mazel tov?
Rice was arrested and charged with simple assault-domestic violence on Feb. 15 after a physical altercation with his fiancée, Janay Palmer, at the Revel Casino and Hotel in Atlantic City, N.J. Palmer also was charged with simple assault.
Conviction of a third-degree crime in New Jersey carries a potential prison sentence of at least three years and up to five years, and a fine that could be up to $15,000.
A video obtained and posted online by TMZ showed Rice lifting Palmer by her arms out of an elevator and laying her on the floor. Rice’s attorney, Michael Diamondstein, has said the footage is authentic but incomplete.
“I have been advised by the prosecutor’s office that an indictment has been returned,” Diamondstein told ESPN on Thursday afternoon. “And again, we deny that he committed an aggravated assault. We don’t think the law would support that [he did]. And we just ask the public to reserve judgment until all of the facts are out.”
The Ravens released a statement Thursday that read: “This is part of the due process for Ray. We know there is more to Ray Rice than this one incident.”
Rice, 27, signed a five-year, $35 million contract with the Ravens before the 2012 season. He is coming off his worst season, rushing for only 660 yards and averaging a career-low 3.1 yards per carry.
“In any of those situations, it’s very concerning,” Newsome said Saturday. “Up until we get all of the facts, we will let the process run its course.
Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome sounded like a decision-maker willing to give Ray Rice a second chance, Jamison Hensley writes. Analysis
“I think John [Harbaugh] said it best [Friday] — we will let facts determine what the consequences will be.”
Rice and his fiancée were both arrested for simple assault a week ago. Police have video evidence that shows Rice knocking her unconscious, according to a report by SI.com.
A video posted online by TMZ earlier this week shows Rice lifting the woman by her arms out of an elevator at the Revel Casino and laying her on the floor. The shows Rice pulling the woman’s legs away from the elevator door, and he props her up as well.
Newsome said he had seen the video that had been posted online.
“I did, online, just like everybody else did and it doesn’t look good,” Newsome said. “But I’m going to reserve all of my comments up until I have a chance to talk to Ray. But what I’ve gotten … the whole video needs to be reviewed.”
Newsome has been in Indianapolis since Monday for meetings with the NFL’s competition committee, and the scouting combine opened Wednesday. So, Newsome said, he had not yet spoken to Rice.
Newsome said Harbaugh has had multiple conversations with Rice since the arrest and that the Ravens’ director of player development had spoken to Rice “every day.”
Newsome added that Rice will fall under the league’s personal conduct policy and face a possible suspension and that the Ravens would let the league determine its discipline first before the team decided if any further action would be warranted.
Players do not have to be convicted of a crime to still be fined and/or suspended under the league’s personal conduct policy.
“I don’t know if anybody here has had the opportunity to talk to Ray,” Newsome said. “I don’t know whether a different story is going to come out, the video is what it is. But like I said, until the process runs its course, we as an organization, we will stand down.
“As a league we have a conduct policy and being a member of the league, we will follow that from A to Z. Up until we get to that point, I mean, right now he falls under the personal conduct policy with the league and we will allow the league to take its position before we would have to take any.”
Harbaugh said Friday at the combine that he expected Rice to participate in the team’s offseason program.
As first reported by The Baltimore Sun, the three-time Pro Bowler and his fiancee, Janay Palmer, were arrested following an alleged fight at a casino early on Saturday morning. Rice's lawyer described the incident to the Sun as a “very minor physical altercation."
TMZ reports that the footage obtained was shot on Saturday, Feb. 15 just before Rice and Palmer were arrested.
The Ravens issued a brieft statement on Sunday."We are aware of the Friday night situation with Ray Rice and his fiancé. We have spoken with Ray, and know that they returned home together after being detained."
The Baltimore Sun broke the story that Rice had been arrested, charged, and released. His attorney, Andrew Alperstein, claimed that Rice’s fiancée had also been arrested in connection with the incident, which he described as a “very minor physical altercation.”
That may be so; Atlantic City police aren’t returning calls on the matter right now and the casino declined to comment on the incident. According to our tipster, though, word at the Revel early Saturday morning was that a woman—presumably the fiancée—had spit on Rice and that in retaliation, he uppercut her, knocking her completely unconscious.
The Atlantic City Police Department provided a report regarding the incident. Rice and his fiancée, Janay Palmer, were each booked for simple assault.
On Saturday February 15, 2014 at 2:51am Atlantic City Police responded to Revel Casino for a domestic dispute. Uniformed Officer Cuong Sam and Officer Bryon Hargis met Revel Security at the porte-cochere and were escorted to both parties involved in the incident. The male and female involved were identified as Raymell Rice and Janay A. Palmer. After reviewing surveillance footage it appeared both parties were involved in a physical altercation. The complaint summons indicates that both Rich [sic] and Palmer struck each other with their hands. The responding officer signed a simple assault complaint against both Rice and Palmer.
Both Ms. Palmer and Mr. Rice refused any medical attention as no injuries were reported by either party. The couple were transported to the Atlantic City Police Department holding facility and charged with Simple Assault-Domestic Violence. They were both released on a summons to appear in court.
A witness who saw the altercation at Revel claimed that Rice hit Palmer “like he punched a guy, knocked down and dragged her out of the elevator by her feet” before security arrived. The witness characterized the dispute as more than a “minor incident.”
