Clarett Claims He Was Beaten and Maced While In Handcuffs

By Mark Hoerrner

Clarett was somber and low-key as he appeared in court this past week. His trial was scheduled for today but was rescheduled for Monday when the judge ordered a psychiatric evaluation. Probably because the trial being referenced is for offenses that happened last year, and Clarett’s latest arrest shows signs of a disturbed individual lurking beneath the former NFL draftee’s skin.

But now Clarett and his attorney, Michael Hoague, are bringing a new claim to the table: abuse of force by the local gendarme.

"It is our contention that both of those things occurred after he was in handcuffs," attorney Michael Hoague told the Associated Press. "A person who calls his loved ones to say, 'I'm about to go to jail,' does not have the mind-set to put up a fight."

Hoague said that his client both obeyed police commands and was prone when the arresting officers handcuffed him and sprayed him with mace.

Clarett was arrested after leading police on a chase that required officers to utilize a spike strip to stop his vehicle and cornered him in a restaurant parking lot. An attempt to use a taser on Clarett failed when a bulletproof vest he was wearing stopped the prongs from delivering the disabling electric shock. Officers claim that Clarett continued to resist arrest and had to be maced and wrestled into handcuffs. Afterward, police discovered an assault rifle, three handguns, an axe and a bottle of Grey Goose vodka in the cab of his vehicle.

Hoague says that his client was obeying police commands throughout the arrest. Dominic Mango, Clarett’s other attorney, is unclear about what happened, though he says its possible his client was struck after the cuffs were on.

"I can’t call it play by play, blow by blow," Mango told the Columbus Dispatch. "Obviously, he had a black eye, multiple lumps and bumps on his head. It looks like he was struck in the lip. How do you get struck in the face being taken into custody?"

Mango noted that most police cars are equipped with video cameras to record arrest action, but does not know if there is tape of what happened to his client. "In this day and age, I’d be shocked if there wasn’t" video of Clarett being cuffed, Mango told the Dispatch. "Most of your traffic cruisers either are or should be equipped with recording devices."

Clarett now faces $6.1 million in bail money if he wants to spring himself from jail, but his attorneys say that he’ll likely be unable to raise the necessary $610,000 to walk. The bond from his first arrest was set at $1.1 million and for his most recent weapons charges, his bond was set at $5 million.