Erik Walden arrested?

[Guiness]

Not speaking directly to Scott with the next part:

Maybe not, but I feel like you're talking to me.

But she has the injuries, not Walden.

THAT means absolutely nothing.

Let me tell you what happened in my case. I'm picking up the kids, she has her dog tied so it can reach the front door. It jumps on me. A standard bred poodle, big damn dog. I shove the dog off, she takes a run at me, screaming to keep my hands off it, and grabs me by the neck. I give her a one armed shove, she bounces off a railing and lands in the garden.

Net result? Not a mark on me (I never bruise) but she has a hand print where I shoved her, a mark in her back from the railing, two more that I'm sure I had nothing to do with, and made damn sure she didn't brush any dirt off before the police got there. She had 911 dialed before she hit the ground. I spent the night in jail.

Yes, she had the bruises. I've never seen her without any, she's got light skin and collects them. They didn't tell any of the story.

I'm not by any means defending Walden, but we have nothing to go on here, and are simply hypothesizing.

[Joemailman]

It's Wednesday so...Fire Slocum!

[pbmax]

Maybe not, but I feel like you're talking to me.

THAT means absolutely nothing.

Let me tell you what happened in my case. I'm picking up the kids, she has her dog tied so it can reach the front door. It jumps on me. A standard bred poodle, big damn dog. I shove the dog off, she takes a run at me, screaming to keep my hands off it, and grabs me by the neck. I give her a one armed shove, she bounces off a railing and lands in the garden.

Net result? Not a mark on me (I never bruise) but she has a hand print where I shoved her, a mark in her back from the railing, two more that I'm sure I had nothing to do with, and made damn sure she didn't brush any dirt off before the police got there. She had 911 dialed before she hit the ground. I spent the night in jail.

Yes, she had the bruises. I've never seen her without any, she's got light skin and collects them. They didn't tell any of the story.

I'm not by any means defending Walden, but we have nothing to go on here, and are simply hypothesizing.

I am sorry to hear that happened Guiness.

And I understand that the bruises, cuts or other injuries do not tell the entire story. But they are the physical evidence as we know it and the police need to attempt to explain them.

[SkinBasket]

Oh well, something to talk about even though we never really know the truth.

Which is why certain people here should not be quick to condemn.

[mraynrand]

Let me tell you what happened in my case. I'm picking up the kids, she has her dog tied so it can reach the front door. It jumps on me. A standard bred poodle, big damn dog. I shove the dog off, she takes a run at me, screaming to keep my hands off it, and grabs me by the neck. I give her a one armed shove, she bounces off a railing and lands in the garden.

A true gentleman would have allowed himself to be strangled to death.

[Zool]

Oh, what sad times are these when passing ruffians can say Ni at will to old ladies. There is a pestilence upon this land, nothing is sacred. Even those who arrange and design shrubberies are under considerable economic stress in this period in history.

I am a shrubber. My name is Roger the shrubber. I design, arrange and sell shrubbery.

[hoosier]

Its actually battery. And the injuries could cause Walden to face a more serious degree of the charge than his girlfriend would if she indeed hit him. So its not the same offense.

We do not know yet, obviously, if Walden did it, or caused the injuries to happen in same other way. And there are exceptions to battery, such as self defense.

Judging from what the DA was quoted as saying in that JSO blurb, it sounded like they would rule out charging Walden if it turned out that she had initiated the physical violence. Maybe that is just the DAs way of synthesizing in shorthand all of the different considerations they need to look at before deciding who to charge with what (or even if to charge at all)....But, while I haven't seen Walden's girlfriend (maybe she is Tamika Catchings...or Tanya Harding), it would seem to me that Walden would have a difficult time explaining the gash on her head (assuming he did something to cause it) as self-defense. I could certainly understand a DA wanting to distinguish between battery that has been provoked and unprovoked battery, but there is also the reality that, with most women, a guy like Walden would also have had the choice of walking away and letting her be the one to get sent downtown.

[sharpe1027]

I could certainly understand a DA wanting to distinguish between battery that has been provoked and unprovoked battery, but there is also the reality that, with most women, a guy like Walden would also have had the choice of walking away and letting her be the one to get sent downtown.

It is quite possible that Walden could have handled the situation better; however, the DA is not supposed to make decisions based upon whether or not Walden was completely justified in the eyes of the public. There's often a huge difference between whether someone chose the absolute best course of action and whether someone did something that would make them a criminal.

[Pugger]

I based what I said on the FACT that Erik Walden is 6'2" and 250 pounds whose day job it is to move very large men to where he wants them. SHE came out of this with injuries to her head and hand and a police report was filed because her initial story was: "Brown County District Attorney John Zakowski said Monday that Walden’s girlfriend originally told police they were arguing and he pushed her but she has changed her story to say she hit him first." Even if she did hit him first, he is a freaking NFL linebacker. You're going to convince me that he was not capable of either holding her still or walking out of the room. When my kid was little he used to start shit with me and hit me. It didn't give me the right to put him in the hospital. No matter how mad I got, I knew that he was smaller than I was and it wouldn't have been a fair fight. Just because she changed her story doesn't mean that the evidence my first post was based on was truly incorrect. According to the Washington Post, in his apology to the team, the NFL and the fans (if he did nothing wrong what is he apologizing for?) he says that he's cooperating with the ONGOING investigation so something tells me the police are a little skeptical of her second story as well. http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports...w9N_story.html

M3 may sit him as punishment. Punishment for what?

THAT is what makes me think that red flags are warranted here.

Thanks for relating how I feel about this situation better than I can.

[Patler]

We can all make a lot of assumptions based on what each of us thinks is the more like reality from the limited information we have read... and be very, very wrong in our conclusions. Some of us may think he is at fault; others may think she is at fault. That is exactly why the Packers should wait until the DA makes a determination based on their investigation.

Her injuries may have occurred in various ways, some more likely than others, but all possibilities under the circumstances. In some, he is at fault; in others, she is at fault. Some possibilities that come to mind quickly:

Hand/thumb injury:
- she hit him with a fist made as kids often do, with their thumb inside of their clenched fingers.
- she defended herself from him and hurt her hand in the process
- she swung at him (in either an aggressive or defensive effort) and missed, hitting a wall, furniture, whatever
- she went after him, he grabbed her hands to restrain her and squeezed too hard with his big meat hooks, crushing her hand
- she pointed her finger in his face to make a point, he grabbed her hand and twisted or crushed it
- she fell while attacking him
- she fell while defending herself

Head injury
- he hit her
- he tried to walk away, she tripped while chasing him, fell and hit something on her own
- he went after her and shoved her, making her fall against something
- she went after him and he pushed her away, making her fall into something
- she swung an object at him, he deflected it and she ended up hitting herself in the head with it. (I have actually seen this happen several times in training exercises)

The injuries might have happened separately, or in one event (falling, jamming her hand and hitting her head). Either way, he might be at fault for both, neither or one of the injuries.

If he is violent in his home life, he deserves to be treated accordingly. On the other hand, if she has a violent streak that he has been trying to deal with, he may not be at fault for the injuries she sustained.

There may by incidents in their past that are relevant to all of this. On the other hand, they may have had nothing in their past that would have predicted this. If he got home late after returning from Detroit, and neither had slept; being tired, an emotional disagreement may have escalated in a way that they are both very embarrassed about right now. He might be at fault. She might be at fault. They might share the blame for this.

It is easy to automatically blame the man, and often it is deserved.
But, when the facts are not clear, its best to wait for the results from the trained investigators before blaming either one.

[swede]

- she swung an object at him, he deflected it and she ended up hitting herself in the head with it. (I have actually seen this happen several times in training exercises)
.

One wonders who you've been training with...

[Zool]

Someone smack this dude upside the head. When are these guys going to learn that their women (who they are supposed to care about) are not football players on the field to be smacked around when they disagree? I hope she leaves him immediately and never speaks to him again.

I think this is the main quote that started this whole thing. A jump to a conclusion that he's abusive without any facts.

[MadtownPacker]

Stop it you abuser!! How could you? I hope ziggy never speaks to you again!!

[Patler]

I based what I said on the FACT that Erik Walden is 6'2" and 250 pounds whose day job it is to move very large men to where he wants them. SHE came out of this with injuries to her head and hand and a police report was filed because her initial story was: "Brown County District Attorney John Zakowski said Monday that Walden’s girlfriend originally told police they were arguing and he pushed her but she has changed her story to say she hit him first."

You do realize her two recounts are not necessarily inconsistent, don't you? People are often reluctant to admit their own blame, until they realize that by not accepting responsibility for their part they are getting someone else in trouble far deeper than they deserve. Some hypotheticals:
"He pushed me, and I got hurt when I fell."
"I hit him, he pushed me and I got hurt when I fell."
"I hit him twice with the nightstick I have by the bed for protection when he is gone; he pushed me when I came at him the third time with it; and I jammed my thumb and hit my head on the foot board as I fell onto the bed."

All are consistent with her getting hurt when he pushed her as she first said. Versions 2 and 3 could be something a lady might fabricate because she is scared of the man or scared to live without him; or they could be something someone would grudgingly admit when accepting their own blame for a very embarrassing moment.

Even if she did hit him first, he is a freaking NFL linebacker. You're going to convince me that he was not capable of either holding her still or walking out of the room. When my kid was little he used to start shit with me and hit me. It didn't give me the right to put him in the hospital. No matter how mad I got, I knew that he was smaller than I was and it wouldn't have been a fair fight. Just because she changed her story doesn't mean that the evidence my first post was based on was truly incorrect. According to the Washington Post, in his apology to the team, the NFL and the fans (if he did nothing wrong what is he apologizing for?) he says that he's cooperating with the ONGOING investigation so something tells me the police are a little skeptical of her second story as well. http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports...w9N_story.html

See my earlier post about how these injuries could have ocured, even if he was trying to walk away from her or restrain her. Of course there is an ongoing investigation. So far, we have heard only her recount and nothing from him. In all likelihood, they differ and truth is somewhere in between. Either or both could be slanting things to protect him, or to protect her. The police will continue to investigate until they believe they have the truth or determine that they will never know for sure.

As for the apology, he could be apologizing for the distraction caused by what he did, or for the distraction caused by the woman he has chosen to live with. Either way, he could feel responsible to the team.

M3 may sit him as punishment. Punishment for what?

THAT is what makes me think that red flags are warranted here.

Did the Packers say it would be for "punishment"?
If he is benched before the DA enters charges it might just be because this is such a controversial issue and playing him would be a distraction for the team; or because they feel he is so distracted by the matter that his preparedness for the game would be inadequate. If Zombo is healthy and ready, the easy thing might be to turn to him and move Walden out of the limelight of public opinion for the game. If he is inactive, it merits a comment at the start of the game. If he plays, it could be an ongoing discussion through out the game and after it, something the Packers really don't need at this point. It could have absolutely nothing to do with his perceived guilt or innocence by the team.

[Patler]

- she swung an object at him, he deflected it and she ended up hitting herself in the head with it. (I have actually seen this happen several times in training exercises)

One wonders who you've been training with...

Demonstrations in self-defense course for untrained students. Pad them up, put helmets on them and let them see why the baseball bat, golf club or night stick they keep for protection will likely be ineffective and possibly harmful to themselves. Not only do they provide their attacker with a weapon if taken away, they often end up hitting themselves with it as they lose grip or it bounces off their target. The wrist strap on an old style nightstick used improperly often causes the stick to fly around and hit the user when grip on the stick is lost. Often, it is the users head that is struck.