The Wichita Police Department has confirmed that Cowboys running back Joseph Randle was arrested in Wichita, despite Randle’s agent saying otherwise.
After the reports surfaced this morning that Randle had been arrested on drug charges, Randle’s agent took to Twitter and disputed those reports. Agent Erik Burkhardt said that while it was true that Randle had an encounter with the police, they only ticketed Randle and did not arrest him.
However, PFT contacted Lt. James Espinoza, the Wichita Police spokesperson, and he confirmed that although Randle wasn’t booked and didn’t have a mug shot taken, he was arrested and given a notice to appear in court.
“His agent can say what he wants to. Here in Wichita, Kansas, it’s considered an arrest,” Espinoza said.
Espinoza said that the police originally arrived on the scene for a domestic violence call but saw no reason to make a domestic violence arrest. He said police will continue to investigate.
“Early Tuesday morning at around 3 a.m. Wichita police were dispatched . . . for domestic violence with a weapon,” Espinoza said, reading from a prepared statement. “Police while there contacted a 23-year-old named Joseph Randle and a 22-year-old female. Upon investigating the 911 call, officers located a small amount of marijuana in the room that was rented or paid for by Joseph Randle. He was subsequently arrested on the scene and given a court date. . . . There was no domestic violence arrest made. Our investigators, our domestic violence experts, are looking into that.”
The marijuana arrest could land Randle in trouble with the NFL’s substance-abuse policy, while the domestic violence call could result in the NFL investigating under its personal-conduct policy. The fact that Randle is finding himself in trouble again just four months after he was arrested for stealing underwear and cologne may also result in the Cowboys asking if he’s more trouble than he’s worth.