Newly released police body-camera footage shows Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs being taken into custody in Wisconsin. The 28-year-old NFL player was arrested May 26 following an incident involving his then-girlfriend.
TMZ published the video October 31, a day after the Hobart/Lawrence Police Department released hundreds of pages of redacted investigative records in response to public-records requests.
Those documents included accounts from three other women who contacted authorities after the arrest. They described alleged assaults during earlier encounters with Jacobs, when he played for the Raiders, according to the Associated Press.
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said October 31 that the league would consider the additional allegations as part of its existing investigation, which remains open. The Packers did not immediately comment.
Bodycam Captures Jacobs Discussing Plans to Surrender
The recording shows Jacobs stepping out of the passenger side of a vehicle after police stop it. He follows an officer’s instruction to turn around, is handcuffed and is searched beside a squad car before being placed in the back seat.
During the encounter, Jacobs tells officers that his attorneys have his phone because his legal team had been preparing for him to turn himself in. Officers later speak with the driver and thank them for pulling over.
The footage documents the arrest, not the confrontation that prompted the investigation.
His Attorneys Dispute Allegations in the Released Records
One woman told investigators that Jacobs grabbed her arms and pushed her against a wall in April 2021, leaving bruises and swelling. Police records obtained during the investigation said responding officers had observed no visible injuries or damage consistent with a physical altercation.
Another woman described a January 2022 encounter in which she said Jacobs slapped her, pulled her hair and threw her to the floor. A third alleged that he pulled her hair, dragged her and scratched her chest during an encounter in May 2022.
Jacobs’ attorneys, David Z. Chesnoff, Richard A. Schonfeld and Clarence F. Duchac III, characterized the accounts as old and uncorroborated. They said prosecutors had possessed the allegations for months and investigated them before deciding that only two misdemeanor charges were warranted.
The defense statement also said Jacobs had repeatedly expressed remorse and was complying with his plea agreement.
Jacobs Was Fined for Battery, With Property Charge Deferred
The case arose from a May 23 incident in Hobart. Jacobs’ then-girlfriend told police that he grabbed her and threw her to the ground, causing her to strike her head. According to court reporting by FOX6 Milwaukee, the criminal complaint said surveillance footage corroborated relevant portions of her account.
On September 10, Jacobs pleaded no contest to misdemeanor battery and criminal damage to property. Judge Marc Hammer convicted him of battery and imposed a $1,000 fine.
The property-damage charge received a 12-month deferred judgment, ABC News reported. That charge can be dismissed if Jacobs satisfies the agreement’s conditions, which include avoiding contact with the victim, completing counseling, paying restitution and committing no further offenses.
“I fully understand the seriousness of the situation and I take full responsibility,” Jacobs told the court.
Jacobs Says Touchdown Gesture Referred to a Gospel Song
The NFL placed Jacobs on the commissioner’s exempt list in August, keeping him out of Green Bay’s first six games on paid administrative leave. He returned to competition in October.
During the Packers’ 27-19 win over the Carolina Panthers on October 29, Jacobs briefly held his hands behind his back after scoring a one-yard touchdown. Viewers questioned whether he was imitating being handcuffed.
Jacobs rejected that interpretation, telling reporters that he and teammate Savion Williams had planned a sequence of celebrations. As NBC Sports reported, he said the gesture referred to the gospel song “Break Every Chain” and that the television broadcast showed only part of the celebration.