NFL star Richard Sherman arrested in domestic violence case

(CNN) – NFL star Richard Sherman was arrested early Wednesday after allegedly trying to break into his in-laws’ home and fight with police officers in Redmond, Washington state, authorities said.

The former San Francisco 49ers cornerback remained in custody at the King County Correctional Center after being booked by Redmond Police at 6:08 a.m., according to the King County Prosecutor’s Office.

He was expected to have an initial court appearance on Thursday.

Redmond Police Chief Darrell Lowe said Sherman was charged with three counts: robbery with domestic violence for allegedly attempting to break into his in-laws’ home, resisting arrest and destroying property.

In a statement, Redmond police said officers located Sherman around 1:50 am Wednesday after receiving a report that he was “attempting to break into the home of a family member.”

“Officers arrived and located Sherman outside the home,” Redmond police said. “The suspect fought with officers while in custody, resulting in the deployment of a K9 team from Redmond to help regain control.”

Sherman resisted, police say

Lowe said officers initially spoke to Sherman and “even joked with him,” but that the soccer star tried to walk away and resisted when told he was under arrest and later got into an altercation with officers.

Washington State Patrol agents were also at the home investigating a hit-and-run incident, according to police. A man was “suspected of leaving his severely damaged vehicle and fleeing on foot” after colliding with a concrete barrier in a work zone on State Route 520, police said.

State police said officers went to the in-laws’ home after the severely damaged van, which had one of its wheels nearly dislodged, was tracked to Sherman and after learning that Redmond police officers had been called to the residence for an unrelated incident involving the soccer player.

Washington State Patrol Captain Ron Mead told reporters that officers were called to a highway construction site on State Route 520 around 1:26 a.m. A highway worker called 911 to report that a possibly incapacitated driver entered the work zone and fled, he said.

‘Lucky that there were no injuries’

“We are very fortunate that there were no injuries,” Mead said.

Mead explained that Sherman is also under investigation for possible hit-and-run and driving under the influence. State troopers obtained a search warrant for Sherman’s blood sample and the results are pending, Mead said.

Lowe said officers reported that Sherman had an “intoxicating odor” on his breath at the time of his arrest.

“Despite what is listed as a ‘charge’ on the jail list, Mr. Sherman has not been criminally charged,” the prosecution’s statement said.

“The police … do not make charge decisions in King County. Police refer investigations for charge decisions and our office makes charge decisions after independent review. In Redmond, our office handles felony cases.”

The prosecutor’s office is awaiting a first appearance document before making an impeachment decision, the statement said.

What the NFL said

Sherman, who is a free agent, is vice chairman of the executive committee of the NFL Players Association.

“We learned of the arrest last night of one of our player leaders for an alleged incident of domestic violence and have activated our domestic violence crisis protocol for the protection and support of all involved,” the union said Wednesday via Twitter.

“We will continue to monitor events closely as more information is provided to us.”

The NFL, in a statement to CNN, said: “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 will face disciplinary measures”.

CNN is attempting to reach Sherman for comment. It is not clear if he has a lawyer.

Who is Richard Sherman?

Sherman, a 33-year-old Stanford University graduate, is a 10-year league veteran who played seven seasons with the Seattle Seahawks before joining the 49ers for the 2018 season.

He has played in five Pro Bowls.

Sherman, who was born in Compton, California and raised in Los Angeles, has been considered a elite cornerback.

He has been a representative of the players’ association since 2014, according to the union’s website. He was voted into the NFLPA executive committee in 2016 and re-elected in 2018 and 2020.

CNN’s Andy Rose contributed to this report.