Post Ray Rice Incident, NFL Announces Tougher Penalties for Players Accused of Domestic Violence

This week, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced tougher penalties for players accused of domestic violence, including six weeks for a first offense and at least a year for a second.

According to the Associated Press, a letter was sent to all 32 team owners, and while they didn’t reference Ray Rice’s name, it makes clear references to the Ravens player who was charged with assault after leaked video footage was discovered of him dragging his then unconscious girlfriend, off of a casino elevator.

According to USA Today’s NFL Arrest Database, since January 2000, 77 players have been involved in 85 domestic violence incidents with six being cut by their teams. The NFL suspended six players for one game each, and Rice was the second player to be suspended for two games.

In the letter, the Commissioner wrote: