Domestic violence is a big problem for professional sports athletes. Athletes are expected to be violent and aggressive in the sport they play, and those traits sometimes transfer into every day interactions. Athletes have been involved in domestic violence cases since the big leagues were created, but it wasn't until the mid 1990's that they were taken seriously. OJ Simpson's murder trial was the case that made people look more closely at athletes and violent crimes (Violence in Professional Sports Slideshow). There appears to be a growing number of domestic violence cases in sports in the past 5 years. People might assume that the reason is simply because more players are committing violent crimes. However, there isn't an increase in the
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One factor is the sport they play. All sports have their own domestic violence policy, some are in depth and others are vague. One player might get suspended for half the season, and another player from a different sport could commit an identical crime and get a more severe punishment. Another factor that affects the severity of the consequences is who the athlete is. If it is just an average player, it can be really simple to make a decision on the punishment. However, if it is a big name athlete, much more thought has to go into the decision. For example, if LeBron James was charged with domestic violence, the NBA would lose a lot of viewers because LeBron has a lot of fans that watch games to see just him. Teams may also choose lighter disciplinary action for their best athletes because they want to win games. Former Chicago Bears manager Jerry Angelo said that over his 30 year career, he didn't discipline players in hundreds of domestic violence cases. Looking back on it, he admits it was a poor decision, but at the time the only thing that mattered was winning games (ESPN.com). Another factor is, surprisingly, the gender of the athlete. For example, professional soccer player, Hope Solo, was charged with two counts of domestic violence, but she was not suspended from soccer, and she kept her endorsement with Nike. Both Adrian Peterson and Ray Rice were charged with domestic violence. However, they received indefinite suspensions and they lost their endorsements
One factor is the sport they play. All sports have their own domestic violence policy, some are in depth and others are vague. One player might get suspended for half the season, and another player from a different sport could commit an identical crime and get a more severe punishment. Another factor that affects the severity of the consequences is who the athlete is. If it is just an average player, it can be really simple to make a decision on the punishment. However, if it is a big name athlete, much more thought has to go into the decision. For example, if LeBron James was charged with domestic violence, the NBA would lose a lot of viewers because LeBron has a lot of fans that watch games to see just him. Teams may also choose lighter disciplinary action for their best athletes because they want to win games. Former Chicago Bears manager Jerry Angelo said that over his 30 year career, he didn't discipline players in hundreds of domestic violence cases. Looking back on it, he admits it was a poor decision, but at the time the only thing that mattered was winning games (ESPN.com). Another factor is, surprisingly, the gender of the athlete. For example, professional soccer player, Hope Solo, was charged with two counts of domestic violence, but she was not suspended from soccer, and she kept her endorsement with Nike. Both Adrian Peterson and Ray Rice were charged with domestic violence. However, they received indefinite suspensions and they lost their endorsements