Hennepin County, MN- Vikings Jerome Simpson was arrested again early Saturday morning and was charged with driving under the influence. This is yet another mark against Simpson who is still on probation as a result of a 2012 for felony drug possession.
Hennepin County Jail records show that he was booked into the jail just after 5:00 a.m. Saturday morning. Initial reports from CBS indicated that he was put on a three day retainer because there wasn’t a judge available to hear his case and could have been forced to sit in jail until Tuesday. He however got lucky and was released just seven hours later.
According to reports, Simpson was driving his Dodge Charger and was stalled on the side of the road just after 5:30 a.m. Saturday morning. CBS Sports reported that Simpson got out of his vehicle as a state trooper pulled up and began to the patrol car. The trooper noticed as Simpson walked towards his vehicle that he showed signs of intoxication; unsteady on his feet, watery eyes and slurred speech, according to the police report.
Simpson refused to take a breathalyzer test and he was arrested on the spot for misdemeanor DUI. That is typical in states which have implied consent laws, which most of them do. Implied consent basically means that just by having a driver’s license you give law enforcement officers the right to ask you to submit to a breathalyzer.
Should you refuse a breathalyzer test, which is your right; an officer can arrest you and charge you for suspicion of driving while intoxicated. They need no other proof that your refusal to blow, since the law believes that refusing to submit to the test is an admission of guilt. Refusing to blow means that you will most likely lose your license for a year, but it can be difficult to prosecute your for driving under the influence.
In the fashion typical of the NFL when a player gets busted for DUI, the Vikings released a statement which really doesn’t say squat.
“The Vikings are aware of the matter involving Jerome Simpson,” the team said in a statement. “We are continuing to gather information and will have further comment at the appropriate time.”
That is a typical response for teams when a player gets busted for driving under the influence and they probably won’t have any further comment. Since it happens so frequently—an average of one a month–it appears as though NFL has their generic statements available. Simpson is the second for November; the first was Cardinals’ tight end D.C. Jefferson.
Simpson may face tougher sanctions from the NFL than other players since he was busted after he attempted to have 2.5 lbs. of marijuana delivered to his house two years ago. That’s a lot of weed and not an amount people have for their personal use, which is why he was charged with a felony. His punishment will probably entail being suspended for a game or two and a hefty fine.
