Details emerge from Greg Hardy domestic violence case

[GMDino]

What a POS.

http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2015/11/6/9683596/greg-hardy-domestic-violence-case-details-photos-nicole-holder

Quote:A more detailed account of the night Greg Hardy was arrested for allegedly threatening and assaulting his ex-girlfriend, Nicole Holder, was revealed in a Deadspin story by Diana Moskovitz published Friday. Moskovitz obtained police documents from the incident, including transcripts of interviews between Holder and police, the 911 calls placed that night and photos of the injuries that Holder suffered. The documents portrayed a terrified Holder and showed how Hardy's story changed several times through multiple meetings with police.

On May 12, 2014, Holder received a text from Hardy's personal assistant and manager, Sammy Curtis, asking her and a friend to hang out Hardy's apartment that night. Hardy and Holder had broken up some time in February, but were still in each other's lives. A group of people, including Holder and Hardy, met at Hardy's apartment, then drank there and at several bars before leaving to go back to Hardy's place at 3 a.m.

Hardy and Holder went into another room while everyone else went to bed. Hardy brought up their relationship and, as Holder describer to police, became irate very quickly.

He dragged her out by her hair and picked her up again, she said, throwing her onto the futon, which had several weapons — what she described as "guns from ... the Army or ... I mean like from video games" — on it. She landed on top of the rifles and then fell onto the floor. In her telling, he stood above her and strangled her with both his hands. She would later tell Detective Faye Strother that she thought she was going to die. "His pupils were tiny," she said. "I mean he looked ... crazy."

There were discrepancies in Hardy's story

After the Hardy reportedly assaulted Holder, he "snapped out of it" according to Moskovitz. He yelled for Curtis to enter the room and hold Holder while he began filming. Holder told police that Hardy was trying to make her "flip out on him." Hardy called 911 and told police that he was a victim of assault, saying he had a welt on his face from when Holder hit him with a shoe and that his manager was fighting to restrain her.

According to Moskovitz, Hardy implies on the call that Holder is a girl his friend brought home that night, a story he reiterated to police later that night. Hardy also initially said he didn't know Holder would be at a bar they had visited, then changed his story to say that he did.

Hardy also seemingly misled police about the number of guns he had. When they went up to his apartment, they saw what appeared to be an air rifle leaning up against a windowsill, and Hardy told them that the only other firearm he had was a handgun. When Hardy was ultimately arrested, he had to turnover 10 firearms to police.

Holder was very scared

In the transcript, Holder says that she told Hardy to kill her "so I don't have to." Hardy and Curtis let Holder go, and when she got out of the building she started running. Police had arrived, either due to Hardy's call or another 911 call placed through a security guard, and caught up with her. Holder was reluctant to cooperate at first. She said that nothing happened, that she "fell down the stairs," and refused to let police take pictures of her bruises.

Police stayed with Holder until 7 a.m. when they took her home. She did eventually open up somewhat, saying "if she ever did anything to damage his career that he would kill her."

Later that day, after she had visited the hospital, she put herself in a hotel. There, she gave a full interview to police and let them take pictures of her injuries.

The NFL knows all this

As Moskovitz reported in September, the NFL was able to obtain photos that were used as evidence against Hardy after striking a convoluted deal with Mecklenburg County district attorney. When the league suspended Hardy 10 games (reduced to four upon appeal) it did so knowing the physical damage that Holder suffered that night. The league is not likely to punish Hardy again because Deadspin brought details to light that were previously unknown to the public.

The Cowboys could do something. They released a statement saying they are aware of the photos and that they have no comment at this time. It's unclear how much the organization knew before it signed Hardy in March. The Cowboys said they conducted a thorough investigation of him at the time. Later reports on Friday said that the Cowboys were not allowed to see the photos prior to signing Hardy, but other details, including the initial police report, would have been available. SB Nation placed calls to the organization but they were unreturned.

Hardy has three sacks on the season, tying him for the team lead after just three games played since returning from suspension. Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones and head coach Jason Garrett praised Hardy's leadership and passion after the team's loss to the Giants in Week 7.

It would be up to the team to take action, if any, against Hardy. Given how much it has tolerated the defensive end thus far -- through tone deaf and sexist comments and an in-game confrontation with the special teams coordinator -- there isn't much reason to believe anything will happen.

Owner Jerry Jones effectively confirmed this when he released a statement on Friday evening:

"While we did not have access to the photos that became public today, we were and are aware of the serious nature of this incident. We as an organization take this very seriously. We do not condone domestic violence. We entered into the agreement with Greg fully understanding that there would be scrutiny and criticism. We have given Greg a second chance. He is a member of our team and someone who is grateful for the opportunity he has been given to move forward with his life and his career."

Deadspin has much more. You can read the full story here.