ORLANDO, Fla. (CBS12) — Former NFL player Marcellus Wiley was arrested over the 4th of July weekend after he allegedly threatened and poked his wife during a stay at an Orlando resort.
According to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded around 4:47 p.m. July 4 to the Orlando World Center Marriott for a reported domestic battery.
According to the arrest report, his wife asked deputies to remove her husband from their hotel room because she feared him. She alleged he threatened to kill her and said that on the morning of July 3, he intentionally poked her in the cheek while she sat on a bed. She told deputies the touching was unwanted and intended to cause harm.
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She also told investigators there was an unreported history of violence in the relationship and that she planned to divorce him after returning home. Deputies said she declined medical treatment and had no visible injuries. She completed a sworn statement and invoked her rights under Florida’s Marsy’s Law.
The couple’s 7-year-old daughter told deputies she heard her parents arguing but did not see any physical contact, according to the report.
Wiley denied any physical altercation and told deputies he and his wife had never been physically violent. Investigators said he also showed them text messages exchanged between the couple over two days that appeared cordial.
Despite the lack of visible injuries or eyewitnesses to the alleged touching, deputies said his wife’s sworn statement established probable cause to arrest Wiley for domestic battery.
Wiley was booked into the Orange County Booking and Release Center on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge.
Wiley played 10 seasons in the NFL before becoming a television analyst and co-host of sports shows including SportsNation and Speak for Yourself.