Former Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III was involved in a fatal car accident last November that left a woman and her dog dead.
Ruggs stands accused of driving 156 mph while drunk leading up to the crash. He is facing anywhere from 2 to 50 years in prison over multiple felonies, including driving under the influence resulting in death and reckless driving.
Since the accident Ruggs has been on home confinement.
With one exception.
According to a recent ESPN column, Ruggs was granted permission in March 2022 to leave home confinement twice a week to practice at a local facility.
That led to an article from NFL insider Mike Florio where he openly wondered whether Ruggs was plotting a return to the league if he is cleared on charges.
“But what if, legally, he’s cleared?” Florio asked. “What if a court finds there was no probable cause? At that point, the NFL would be in a difficult spot. Based on precedent, a banishment would be difficult to defend.
“In 2009, receiver Donte’ Stallworth was suspended for one season after pleading guilty to DUI manslaughter. One year earlier, defensive end Leonard Little was suspended eight games after an involuntary manslaughter plea. If Ruggs has his charges thrown out, what will the NFL do? If a guilty plea to DUI manslaughter leads to a one-year suspension, what do dismissed DUI manslaughter causes trigger?
“Maybe that’s why Ruggs is working out. Maybe he’s getting ready for the possibility that he’ll eventually be cleared to return to pro football. Whether a team gives him another chance would remain to be seen.”
The details from Ruggs’ accident have been brutal. Everything from video of what he and his girlfriend were doing prior to the crash to clips showing how he was driving to how he acted in the hospital afterwards has come out.
The sheer amount of alcohol he was accused of consuming has been staggering.
Yikes Dana White. https://t.co/HluzDqFEvs
— Game 7 (@game7__) July 12, 2022
None of it has made him look particularly innocent. It’s hard to see a scenario where he is permitted to return to the NFL, but stranger things have happened.
How will this entire ugly saga ultimately end? An answer will emerge in the coming months.
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A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
