Kareem Hunt placed on commissioner's exempt list
The NFL has placed Kareem Hunt on the commissioner's exempt list following the release of a video Friday that shows the running back shoving and kicking a woman in a Cleveland hotel in February, the league announced.
The Kansas City Chiefs announced shortly after that they have released the second-year pro.
Hunt was accused in February of pushing a 19-year-old woman named Abigail Ottinger. Cleveland Police told NFL.com that no arrests were made and Hunt was not charged following the incident. NFL.com obtained police reports that stated witnesses gave conflicting reports to police about the source of the confrontation.
The NFL and the Chiefs had not seen the video before Friday, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports. The league made multiple attempts to obtain the video but both the hotel and Cleveland Police would not provide the footage, Rapoport adds.
The league also made attempts to contact the alleged victims but did not receive a response, Rapoport reports, citing sources.
The NFL originally opened an investigation into the matter in February, which will now include a review of "the new information that was made public (Nov. 30)," the league stated.
The exempt list is defined as, per the NFL player personnel policy manual: "A special player status available to clubs only in unusual circumstances. The List includes those players who have been declared by the Commissioner to be temporarily exempt from counting within the Active List limit. Only the Commissioner has the authority to place a player on the Exempt List; clubs have no such authority, and no exemption, regardless of circumstances, is automatic. The Commissioner also has the authority to determine in advance whether a player's time on the Exempt List will be finite or will continue until the Commissioner deems the exemption should be lifted and the player returned to the Active List."
Hunt led the league in rushing last year and ranks fifth in the league this season with 824 yards. He recorded 14 total touchdowns for the 9-2 AFC-leading Chiefs.
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