Former Ohio State linebacker Darron Lee was arrested Monday night on charges of domestic violence and assault.
Darron Lee’s mugshot (Franklin County Sheriff’s Office)
According to Franklin County Municipal Court records, Lee was arrested following a report of domestic violence in Dublin, Ohio, on Monday. He was charged with two counts of domestic violence and two counts of assault, and his arraignment was scheduled for Tuesday morning.
According to the Columbus Dispatch, a female relative accused Lee of punching her in the head multiple times during an argument.
The relative told officers that Lee became upset when she told him to leave and began yelling at her before grabbing her shirt and shoving her into a wall multiple times.
"(The relative) was then thrown to the ground while Mr. Lee kept screaming at her. Mr. Lee then began to strike her head with his fists making contact with her face and back of her head," court records said. "(The relative) stated that he struck her approximately 8-9 times in the head area with a closed fist."
Lee has also been accused of assaulting the mother of his child during a separate incident on October 17, which police learned about during the investigation into Monday’s incident.
"(The woman) was laying on the bed and Darron got on top of her, with his knees making contact with her knees, and his left hand on her neck where it remained for approximately 60 seconds," court records said. "During this time, (the woman) advised that Darron told her that he would kill her and their child."
The woman also told police that Lee had punched the pillow beside her head multiple times and squeezed her throat, threw her phone and struck her in the side of the head.
The argument then continued into the downstairs area of the home. The woman told police that Lee "grabbed (her) by the neck and lifted her up."
"He then swung (her) around and dropped her onto the ground," court records said.
Lee then went back upstairs, at which point the woman was able to get their child and leave the home safely.
Lee reportedly told police that the woman had struck him in the face during the argument and again while they were going downstairs and denied ever putting his hands on the woman's neck. Police reportedly viewed photographs of injuries the woman had taken that night by a relative, photos of a hole in the wall and a broken phone, as well as a journal entry the woman made related to the incident.
Lee played for Ohio State from 2013-15, starting at linebacker for the Buckeyes’ 2014 national championship team. He went on to be selected in the first round of the 2016 NFL draft by the New York Jets and spent five seasons in the league with the Jets, Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills.
