The report wraps up an inquiry by former FBI Director Robert Mueller into how the NFL initially investigated the then-Baltimore Ravens running back’s attack on Janay Palmer last February at the Revel Casino Hotel in Atlantic City.
“We concluded there was substantial information about the incident — even without the in-elevator video — indicating the need for a more thorough investigation,” Mueller said in his report. “The NFL should have done more with the information it had, and should have taken additional steps to obtain all available information about the February 15 incident.”
The NFL asked for Mueller’s report in September after a public outcry over NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s handling of Rice’s discipline.
“While this investigation has now concluded, our focus on the underlying issues and our commitment to positive change remain as strong as ever,” Goodell said in a written statement. “We have all learned a great deal in the past months and expect to be judged by how we lead going forward on issues of domestic violence and sexual assault.”
Here are some things we learned through the report:
No evidence of video at NFL office
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Mueller said he joined the WilmerHale firm in March 2014, years after the firm helped the league negotiate with two media groups. In the past four years, the firm has only provided advice on immigration issues.
“Placing these relationships in context, I am quite confident that the ties described above have in no way influenced the conduct of this investigation,” he says.
Recommendations
Mueller says: “Our findings demonstrate the weaknesses inherent in the league’s longstanding practice of deferring to the criminal justice system with respect to the investigation of facts and the imposition of discipline under the Personal Conduct Policy. Discipline should be imposed on the basis of the specific nature of the player’s conduct, not solely or necessarily on the disposition of a criminal case.”
He recommend the NFL establish an investigative team for domestic violence and sexual assault cases, that the league expand its security department with a special counsel and other personnel, and clarify policies that assured teams the league shared information.
“Investigations of domestic violence cases present unique challenges,” the report says.
