The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office filed a protection petition asking a judge to provide additional protective measures for Adrian Peterson’s 4-year-old son.
In a news release, the attorney’s office said the Child in Need of Protection or Services (aka CHIPS) petition, filed Friday, calls for a safety plan that includes no physical discipline, no unsupervised or unauthorized contact for Peterson with the boy, and the completion of a parenting assessment. Peterson would be required to follow the assessment’s recommendations, the release said.
“State law requires us to file an action in child protection court when charges are filed in criminal court alleging serious injuries against a child living in Hennepin County,” Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said in the statement. “Our own internal investigation has revealed that the injuries were serious enough to meet the legal threshold and, as a result, we have filed a [CHIPs] petition in Hennepin County District Court this afternoon. Due to state privacy laws, as well as the understandable desire of the mother to protect her child’s privacy, we will not comment further on this petition.”
The boy’s mother has cooperated with Hennepin County child protection services, the Star Tribune reports, not allowing Peterson to have contact with his son as requested by the county.
Peterson is accused of abusing the child with a thin, leafless tree branch in Montgomery County, Texas. The star Vikings running back, who will remain away from the team until the charges are resolved, denies abusing his son and claims he was disciplining his son the same way he was disciplined as a youth. Peterson’s mother agreed, saying the whippings were “not about abuse, but love.”
Goodell addresses domestic violence issues
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell addressed the issue of domestic violence in a New York Press conference Friday afternoon. He said the league has gotten how it handles the issues wrong and accepted much of the blame himself.
https://twitter.com/IrisPerezFOX9/status/513051410628628480
Goodell said he is not considering resigning and believes he still has the support of the NFL’s 32 owners. He called for changes to league policies and procedures and said everything is on the table, to get it right.
One of the changes Goodell highlighted was the formation of a personal conduct committee. He hopes to have it in place before the Super Bowl. He did not indicate what role he would play in disciplinary decisions.
NFL Commissioner Goodell: "We need to change our policies and our procedures" on dealing with personal conduct cases.
— ABC News (@ABC) September 19, 2014
Roger #Goodell laid out measures the #NFL will take to reduce domestic violence incidences http://t.co/zb2w9RFQkh pic.twitter.com/lnioaB7xkh
— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 19, 2014
Goodell only briefly discussed Peterson. He was asked what he would tell a mother and two children, who are Vikings fans and have Peterson jerseys?
https://twitter.com/GoesslingESPN/status/513047916051980288
