Ray Rice Yet To Address Casino Incident; Donated To Md. House Of Ruth
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The fallout is growing in the domestic abuse case involving Ravens star Ray Rice, his fiancée and the video inside an Atlantic City casino.
Mike Hellgren has the latest developments.
Days now after it happened, Ray Rice has said nothing. Some say he should start speaking up.
Ray Rice got a chilling reception on CBS's The Talk, as the TMZ Sports video showing him dragging his unconscious fiancée, Janay Palmer, out of an Atlantic City hotel elevator is continuing to dominate many conversations around the country.
John Maroon has spent two decades in public relations working for several pro teams, including the Orioles and the Indians, and says Rice needs to address the scandal.
"You've got a legal opinion that generally is circle the wagons; don't say a word, we're working on it. You've got a PR strategy that says no, you've got to stay out in front of it," Maroon said. "People need to see and hear Ray explain what the heck happened."
"Because he was perceived as such a beacon in our community, it makes it that much worse," he continued.
Making things more difficult for Rice is a court summons WJZ was first to obtain, saying the reason his fiancée is unconscious is because he hit her.
"The video is damning. You have Ray basically dragging his unconscious fiancée off of an elevator. That's bad," said Maroon. "You have Ray, his legal team, the Ravens, their legal team, you have the NFL, you have the NFL Players Association. There's a lot of moving parts."
Palmer's Instagram account is filled with happy pictures of her and Rice. She started dating him in high school and they have a daughter together.
WJZ has learned Rice donated to Maryland's House of Ruth, which helps battered women, even visiting the children's shelter there.
The organization, while not officially commenting on the case, has started a dialogue about the incident on its Facebook page.
"We're also seeing comments around the fact that he's an athlete, a star, a hero and therefore in some ways it's excusable. It is absolutely not," Executive Director Sandi Timmins said.
Atlantic City prosecutors are continuing to review the evidence.
Related Story: Ravens Fans Sound Off After RB Ray Rice Arrested In Atlantic City
Both Rice and Palmer face the same single charge--one count of simple assault.
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