The NFL’s biggest flaw in the handling of Josh Brown arose from its decision to impose discipline before the authorities had concluded their investigation. The conclusion of the investigation has allowed the prosecutor to conclude that no formal charges should be filed.
At the very end of the better-late-than-never-but-still-way-too-late report filed last month, Detective Robin Ostrum of the King County Sheriff’s Department explains that "[t]his case file will be sent to the King County Prosecutor’s Office for their review of filing charges of [two] counts of DV-Assault 4 Degree.”
Via NJ.com, the King County Prosecutor determined on Thursday, October 20, to not file charges. The memo cites the reluctance of Molly Brown to cooperate with the case as the primary reason for the decision not to proceed.
The two counts mentioned by Detective Ostrum relate to the May 22, 2015 incident for which Brown was arrested, and a May 2014 incident that occurred after Josh Brown “had come home intoxicated after being at a bachelor party.” Molly Brown confronted Josh Brown for driving drunk, and she claimed that he responded by slamming her “into a large mirror with a very large frame around it,” and that she struck her head and left arm on the frame.
The impact caused a crack in the mirror, and she then fell and landed on a marble floor.
“Molly was face down on the floor and Josh held her down by putting his forearm across the back of her neck and laying on her with his full body weight,” Detective Ostrum wrote. “Molly’s face was pushed into the carpet and she stated that she could not move her heard or her body, and it made it very hard for her to breathe.”
Detective Ostrum personally inspected the crack in the mirror, and Josh and Molly Brown’s young daughter witnessed Josh holding Molly down on the floor.
The memo from the prosecutor also points out that the investigation was left open for a year in the event Molly Brown changed her mind. Still, the authorities seemed to move quickly to resolve the matter after the NFL imposed a one-game suspension on Josh Brown -- and after media inquiries undoubtedly snowballed regarding the status of a case that quickly was growing stale.