Ezekiel Elliott‘s legal advisor Frank Salzano today issued a press release stating his view that Elliott will eventually be cleared of domestic violence charges, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Reports yesterday indicated that Elliott’s ex-girlfriend/accuser is cooperating with the NFL’s investigation.
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“For the past several days the media has elected to focus on allegations of domestic violence involving Mr. Elliott despite the Columbus, Ohio Prosecutor’s Office decision not to charge Mr. Elliott nearly two months ago,” the statement reads in part. “My office provided a mountain of exculpatory evidence demonstrating Mr. Elliott’s innocence and directly contradicting all of the false allegations contained in the Accuser’s two police reports…”
The statement goes on to call on the NFL to close its investigation of Elliott given that it has already interviewed him. Cowboys owner Jerry Jones also seemingly wants the matter to end, or at least get some clarification as to its status, as Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com reports that Jones attempted to speak with NFL investigator Lisa Friel during recent league meetings. Friel, however, did not engage with Jones.
Under the league’s old personal conduct policy, Elliott might have been in the clear after the Columbus DA passed on charges. Now, in the post-Ray Rice era, the NFL is taking DV allegations much more seriously. It’s also fair to say that the league is being extra cautious in the wake of the Josh Brown controversy which has dominated headlines for weeks.