Tampa Bay Buccaneers Aqib Talib turns himself in for aggravated assault with deadly weapon
Just a few days after an arrest warrant was issued for Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Aqib Talib, he has turned himself in for charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Police in Garland, Texas said that they were called to a domestic disturbance and upon investigation, issued arrest warrants for Talib and his mother, Okolo Talib.
Talib’s bail is set at $25,000 while his mother’s is set at $30,000 for being a felon in possession of a firearm. She turned herself in on Tuesday and was released on bail soon after. If Talib is convicted of this second-degree felony, he could face between
5 to 20 years in prison.
“We are deeply troubled by the serious charges filed against Aqib Talib,” Bucs general manager Mark Dominik said in a statement released by the team. “Due to current labor circumstances, we will withhold any further comment or action.”
When police attended to the domestic disturbance call on 21 March, 2011, they found that gunshots were fired by Talib and his mother at the boyfriend of Talib’s sister, Shannon Billings. Talib also physically assaulted Billings.
Although National Football League spokesman Greg Aiello says that teams cannot contact players in any way during the lockout, Talib could be punished when a new Collective Bargaining Agreement is reached under the League’s personal conduct policy.
“The conduct and drug policies are currently suspended,” Aiello said. “However, any violations of law that occur during the work stoppage will be reviewed for potential discipline.”
Talib was selected 20th overall in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft out of the University of Kansas. He became the first player out of Kansas to be drafted in the first round since 1993. At the NFL Rookie Symposium that year, Talib had a
fight with teammate Cory Boyd and accidentally hit another player in the face with his helmet.
Just one year later, Talib was arrested by a highway patrol in Florida for assaulting a taxi driver in the 2009 preseason. He was charged with simple battery and resisting arrest, resulting in NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell suspending him for the first game
of the 2009 regular season.
Even with his off-field issues, Talib has performed well as a cornerback for the Bucs. In his rookie year, he had the most interceptions among rookies with four and was tied in tenth for the most interceptions in the entire League.
Just two weeks after being suspended in 2009, Talib had three interceptions in one game against the Washington Redskins in Week 3 of the 2009 regular season with a total of five interceptions. In the 2010 season, Talib had six interceptions returned for
a total of 91 yards.
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