Carlo Allegri/Reuters
A law enforcement official says he sent an NFL executive the elevator video of Ray Rice knocking out Janay Palmer in April. The official, who remains anonymous due to the ongoing investigation, played an April 9 voicemail from an NFL office number confirming receipt of the video. “You’re right. It’s terrible,” a female voice said. In July, Rice was suspended for two games after TMZ posted the first video showing Rice dragging Palmer out of the elevator. If the AP’s timeline is accurate, the NFL saw the knockout video before suspending Rice for two games.
As Michael Daly reports, the NFL didn't need to see the second tape to know Rice knocked out Palmer. The police report, online since February, said Rice assaulted Palmer by "attempting to cause bodily injury...specifically by striking her with his hand, rendering her unconscious."
The NFL has denied having access to the video of the punch prior to TMZ’s posting of it on Monday. “We assumed that there was a video. We asked for video. But we were never granted that opportunity,” said Commissioner Roger Goddell. The commissioner also said that the NFL never requested the video from Revel Casino because “our understanding of New Jersey law is that the casino is prohibited from turning over material to a third party during a law-enforcement proceeding.” However, a spokesman for the state's attorney general, said Goodell is wrong. “No, it’s not illegal.” The NFL has assigned former FBI Director Robert Mueller to head an investigation into the handling of the Ray Rice situation.