Violence Off the Field: An Examination of Punishments Meted Out to Violent Offenders

• In Event: Perceptions and Realities of Crime

Abstract

Football is the most violent of America’s four main professional sports with an offending rate of 2,465.8 arrests per 100,000 players (Kluger, 2014). The most recent peer reviewed research reveals that despite this alarming rate, the NFL does not have a higher rate of arrests that the general population; although for 6 of the 14 yearly comparisons, the NFL does have a higher rate of arrest for violent crimes than the general public (Leal, Gertz, and Piquero, 2015). Recent violence committed by NFL players has resulted in public concern about the amount of crime in the NFL; 69% of Americans believe that the NFL has an epidemic of domestic violence (Vox Populi Polling, 2014). This paper will examine incidents of violence committed by NFL players off the field, the punishments meted out by the NFL and the criminal justice system, and the NFL’s attempts to curb violence among its players.

Authors

• Victoria Park, Fisher College

• Allix Kallini, Fisher College

• Paige Ciavarro, Fisher College

• Meridith Spencer, Fisher College