Adrian Peterson will reportedly not be facing felony domestic violence charges, and his wife, Ashley, has come to his defense after a Super Bowl weekend arrest at LAX.
The longtime NFL running back was arrested on Sunday morning after allegedly getting in a verbal and physical altercation with his wife on an airplane, though Los Angeles’ District Attorney’s office told TMZ that those charges will be dropped.
The airplane had to return to the gate from the runway, and Peterson was booked after police said there was a mark on his wife’s finger after he allegedly removed her wedding ring.
Ashley Peterson told TMZ on Tuesday that “at no point did Adrian hit or strike me.”
“Adrian and I had a verbal argument,” she continued. “Unfortunately, it was on an airplane.”
The couple had been in Los Angeles during the lead-up to the Super Bowl, and attended the DirecTV party together.
On Monday, Peterson told Fox 26 in Houston that the incident had been blown out of proportion.
“I was literally mind-blown that they took me to jail,” he said. “They were like, ‘I’m sorry, Mr. Peterson, but because she had a scratch on her finger, [in] the state of California, we have to take you in.’ I sit there and watch the plane pull back and take off and I’m just like, ‘Wow! I cannot believe this is happening right now. I’m going to jail, and I literally didn’t do anything.’ ”
Peterson’s case will be referred to the L.A. City Attorney, which might press misdemeanor charges.
The running back played a total of four games this past season for the Titans and Seahawks. Previously, he played for the Lions, Washington Football Team (now the Commanders), Saints, Cardinals and Vikings.