Free-agent cornerback Richard Sherman was arrested near Seattle on Wednesday morning and booked on charges of burglary domestic violence, resisting arrest and malicious mischief, Redmond (Wash.) police chief Darrell Lowe told reporters during an afternoon news conference.
Sherman is also being investigated by Washington State Patrol in an alleged hit-and-run and DUI while driving through a closed construction zone, per Washington State Patrol captain Ron Mead.
The 33-year-old veteran was booked in King County (Wash.) Correctional Facility in Seattle at 6:08 a.m. PT and currently has been denied bail, which is standard procedure for anyone arrested on any charge related to domestic violence, per the King County Superior Court Clerk's Office.
A Redmond (Wash.) police news release stated that Sherman arrived at a family member's house early Wednesday morning and tried to force his way into the home and officers were called onto the scene.
Lowe said during his news conference that the house belonged to Sherman's in-laws, and "the domestic violence component results from Mr. Sherman's relationship with the occupants of the residence, not due to him physically assaulting his significant other. The malicious mischief is the result of damage he caused to the door of the residence."
Bail may be assigned once Sherman appears in court, per the King County Superior Court Clerk's office.
Sherman's wife, Ashley Moss, spoke with the Seattle Times on Wednesday.
"At this time we're going to make no statements, except he didn't harm anybody," Moss said. "My kids were not harmed in the incident. He's a good person and this is not his character. We're doing all right, just trying to get him out. I want people to know no one was injured."
Close friends of Sherman's have been aware of personal troubles and have visited Sherman this offseason in the hopes of helping him through his issues, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported.
According to Lowe, when officers arrived Sherman was outside and never had gained entrance into the residence. The initial interaction between Sherman and police was cordial, per Lowe, but he said "the situation turned" when officers informed Sherman that they had established probable cause to make an arrest.
"He attempted to walk away from the officers and at a point accelerated his pace," Lowe said. "At the point in time that the officers made physical contact with him, he resisted. An altercation occurred and subsequently a K-9 was deployed to gain, or to assist in gaining compliance in taking him into custody."
Lowe said Sherman and an arresting officer each sustained minor injuries during the incident, specifying that Sherman sustained a laceration to his lower leg and ankle as a result of contact with the K-9.
Earlier in the night, at approximately 1:26 a.m. PT, a 911 call reported that a possibly impaired driver had entered a closed construction zone, Mead told reporters. The license plate reported Sherman as owner of the car, which was later found abandoned in a nearby parking lot and appeared to have sustained significant damage from impact with a barrier upon leaving the construction zone, per Mead.
"Troopers began searching the area looking for the driver of the vehicle for suspicion of DUI, and, at some point, were redirected to an address in Redmond and later learned Redmond PD was in the process of looking for Mr. Sherman for an unrelated event," Mead said.
Following Sherman's arrest, officers conducted a legal blood draw, which results are pending, according to Mead.
No construction workers sustained injuries as a result of the incident, Meads added.
The NFL released the following statement on Sherman:
"Free agents are eligible to sign with any team. The league investigates any incident involving law enforcement and if there is a violation of the personal conduct policy the player would be facing discipline."
The NFL Players Association released the following statement regarding Sherman, who is a vice president on the NFLPA's Executive Committee:
"We were made aware of an arrest last night of one of our player leaders for an alleged domestic violence incident and have activated our domestic violence crisis protocol for the protection and support of everyone involved. We will continue to monitor events closely as more facts are made available to us."
Sherman spent the first seven years of his career with the Seattle Seahawks. The three-time All-Pro cornerback played the last three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers. Sherman's contract expired following the 2020 season, and he is currently a free agent.
