Via VIBE:
The second NFL player to come under fire for violence this week, Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was indicted on a felony child abuse charge.
Peterson was charged with injury to a child after his 4-year-old son returned home to his mother with injuries resulting from a “whooping” with a thin branch (switch) by the 29-year-old football star. He was taken into police custody in Montgomery County, TX and released on a $15,000 bond.
The young boy sustained a number of visible injuries, “including cuts and bruises to the child’s back, buttocks, ankles, legs and scrotum, along with defensive wounds to the child’s hands,” according to CBS Houston. While Peterson alleges that he never went “overboard,” his son described having leaves in his mouth during his beating and shared that the running back has a “whooping room.”
In a series of text messages, Peterson also explained his reasoning to his son’s mother. “Got him in nuts once I noticed. But I felt so bad, n I’m all tearing that butt up when needed! I start putting them in timeout. N save the whooping for needed memories!” he wrote.
Rusty Hardin, Peterson’s attorney, released a statement in defense of his client, stating that the boy’s injuries were not his intent.
“He used the same kind of discipline with his child that he experienced as a child growing up in east Texas […] It is important to remember that Adrian never intended to harm his son and deeply regrets the unintentional injury,” the statement read.
Peterson has also been deactivated by the Vikings from their game against the New England Patriots this Sunday (Sept. 14).