Giants kicker Josh Brown denies striking his wife in his first public comments since a disturbing round of revelations about his alleged history of domestic abuse led to his belated exile from football.
Brown was deactivated by the Giants and placed on the NFL commissioner’s exempt list after a Washington sheriff’s office unsealed evidence from its battery investigation in 2015. In journal entries, Brown wrote of a pattern of “physically, emotionally and verbally” abusing his ex-wife, Molly — who is barely mentioned, and not by name, in Tuesday’s pseudo-apology.
“I am sorry that my past has called into question the character or integrity of The New York Giants, Mr. Mara or any of those who have supported me along the way,” Brown said in a statement released to ESPN.
“I have taken measures to get help so that I may be the voice of change, not a statistic. It is important to share that I never struck my wife, and never would.
“Abuse takes many forms, and is not a gray area. Through the past several years I have worked to identify and rectify my own behaviors. The road to rehabilitation is a journey and a constant modification of a way of life. My journey will continue forever as a person determined to leave a positive legacy and I embrace the opportunities to show and speak about what has helped me to be that man.
“In the interim, I am cooperating with the Giants and the NFL. Thank you to everyone that has supported me, I will not let you down.”
The statement comes out the same day the Giants hierarchy is set to meet to discuss Brown’s future with the team.
Molly Brown, according to documents released Wednesday by the Kings County (Wash.) Sheriff’s Office, described an incident in which her then-husband allegedly kicked her in the back. She also detailed instances in which he would slam the door on her and her fingers would get caught in the door. In May 2015 — the incident that led to his arrest and eventual one-game NFL suspension — she reached for the phone and he grabbed her wrist, causing a “small abrasion and some bruising that looked like finger marks,” according to a police report.
Molly Brown told police that Josh threatened to hit and kill her “a lot,” but said he had not punched her.