Cedric Griffin Was Arrested in August

by Anthony21 on Oct 8, 2009 4:18 PM CDT in Vikings Comment 41 comments

How did this one slip through the cracks? Well, if you needed any indication of the extent to which the media was focused on other aspects of the Vikings this summer, no one seemed to notice an arrest of Cedric Griffin in August for drunken driving. The arrest finally came to the surface today because he was sentenced:

Griffin was arrested on Aug. 30. in Eden Prairie after he pulled his car over to the side of Hwy. 5 because he didn't feel it was safe to continue to drive. Police officers found him inside his car and arrested him.

And so he'll need to perform a couple days of community service and pay a few hundred bucks. But clearly, he did the responsible thing by determining he couldn't continue driving and then pulling over. Getting into the driver's seat to begin with wasn't a terribly smart idea, but fortunately, he didn't hurt himself or anyone else.

This isn't the first time Griffin has been arrested -- he was charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct in 2007 after an altercation with some guards at the Spin nightclub in Minneapolis.

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Am I the only one who thinks it was pretty crappy of those cops to arrest him after he had already pulled over and stopped driving on his own?

I mean … come on.

by puddnhead on Oct 8, 2009 5:39 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Know the law

Happens ALL the time. In many states, it is a separate section of code. Havinbg physical control of the vehicle while under the influence, instead of operting the vehicle while under the influence. The law was written to expressly prohibit that very conduct. Hard to blame the cops for enforcing the law exactly how the legislature intended it to be enforced.

TiggerSr

by TiggerSr on Oct 8, 2009 5:43 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

in iowa, the key have to be in the ignition

even if only partway in order to get an OWI. I slept in my truck one winter night after dart league and had a remote start on the truck. i took the clicker off the keychain and threw they keys in the bed. i kept starting the truck with the clicker to keep warm and was sleeping when a cop pulled up, thinking he was going to get an arrest. tapped on the window with his flashlight, waking me up, and told me to step out of the vehicle. i told him that i would not, to which he responded that i was attempting to operate my motor vehicle while intoxicated. i informed him, to the contrary, that i was doing no such thing, at which point he asked me for my keys.

i told him that if he could find them in all the random shit in the bed of the truck, that he could have them and explained that i had a remote start and pushing the brake pedal without the keys in the ignition shuts the motor off and showed him. he was pretty pissed at having been outsmarted by a drunken dipshit and huffed off, leaving me to the fitful slumber of an individual whose mind is not incumbered by the thought process…..

while it is illegal to have the keys in the ignition, having a remote start with an ignition interlock is more than acceptable!!!

I piss people off on a fairly regular basis. I cherish my right to speak my mind, whether I sound like an uneducated savage or not. I've never been accused of keeping what I think a secret, nor will I ever. Don't like it? I don't care.

by IABerserker1 on Oct 8, 2009 6:36 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

That may be the best

drunken story I have ever heard.

by TheEvilProfessor on Oct 9, 2009 10:53 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

+1

Unfortunately, in Mn. if the keys are in the vehicle, or on your body, the charge is valid.

by Duluth Viking on Oct 9, 2009 11:05 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I agree

This could have gone either way but it was probably a cop who wanted his name recognized as the cop who arrested Cedric Griffin.

I agree that most states you need the key in the ignition. However it appears MN is a bit different.

by PurpleJesus on Oct 9, 2009 11:05 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

They can take you in for public intoxication too. I think the police officer was just doing his job to be honest. If Griffin was that loaded, he never should’ve even started the car.

by Frost on Oct 9, 2009 11:29 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

depends

How intixicated he was when the officer got there.

by PurpleJesus on Oct 10, 2009 6:09 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

If

the keys are inside the car you can get a DUI even if you are sleeping in the back seat

by hickenizgriz on Oct 8, 2009 6:21 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Well, that varies by state. In Minnesota that's potentially true. In Iowa the engine has to be running.

by Zoltan on Oct 8, 2009 7:30 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

YES

Mn. law calls it intent to drive, even if the car is not running, if the keys are on your person or in the vehicle, you’re gonna get a DUI !!

by Duluth Viking on Oct 9, 2009 12:05 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Pretty strict

by PurpleJesus on Oct 11, 2009 11:11 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

This explains everything!

So he wasn’t really as lacking in speed, agility, acceleration and awareness after all…he was simply drunk on the field. Same end result, I guess.

by KC Viking on Oct 8, 2009 10:29 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

So now comes the suspension, which seems kinda strange to me. I guess the NFL also gets its information regarding player arrests from the Media then? Otherwise he’d be suspended already, or have a meeting with Goodell, right?

Oh well, it’s time for Asher Allen to show we didn’t waste a pick on him. I don’t think they’ll move Sapp to starting CB, since he gambles so much.

by Frost on Oct 9, 2009 7:31 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Its hard to say though

I mean the fact that he pulled over makes it a little more responsible. He may just get a fine or something like that. Maybe no more than a game suspension. This isn’t exactly the (Koren? I always got those two mixed up) Robinson thing.

by TheEvilProfessor on Oct 9, 2009 10:55 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Actually, I am sure the league already knew about it.

They don’t suspend people for being arrested on suspicion of DWI/DUI or other crimes. They have to be convicted first. You know, innocent until proven guilty?

He pleaded guilty in the last few days, so expect the meeting and subsequent punishment to come rather soon.

by Bjorno on Oct 9, 2009 11:26 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

That makes perfect sense.

by KC Viking on Oct 9, 2009 11:57 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Asher Allen

I hope that the team suspends Griffin for more than 1 game and Asher Allen takes over the job, actually. All along, I’ve thought that Griffin should play nickel or either safety position (he was mostly a FS in college, but started some games at SS as well and was listed as a FS in nfldraftscout.com’s draft coverage, which also says that he had allowed too big of a cushion in college). According to nfldraftscout.com’s scouting report, Allen has better speed and coverage skills.

by KC Viking on Oct 9, 2009 12:35 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

As much as I would like to see Allen get some play time, but it may be too early to ask for that. I doubt he will be suspended, especially considering the circumstances surrounding it and that it was his first offense.

Not to mention the fact that Chilly would probably say “Well, let’s see here. Griffin was my number 2 corner, so I have to put my #3 corner in his place.” Then it would be a few games with Benny Sapp as our starting cornerback.

Scary.

by Bjorno on Oct 9, 2009 3:23 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Benny is #2?

Wow, so he doesn’t not just romanticize below-average QBs?

by KC Viking on Oct 9, 2009 8:33 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yea, he is the nickle back. Which by Chilly’s calculations, and many others, means he is the third CB on the depth chart.

by Bjorno on Oct 9, 2009 8:44 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I understand, but I’m still surprised. It’s several x as surprising considering the truth of your last comment in this thread: Sapp is a gambler, and since when did Chilly reward that (excluding Favre)?

by KC Viking on Oct 9, 2009 9:22 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Perhaps you are right, considering how tight the reins were on Tjack.

by Bjorno on Oct 10, 2009 10:45 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah

Maybe Tyrell just doesn’t get it, just like Tarvaris.

by KC Viking on Oct 10, 2009 11:14 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Hey now, let’s not lump him into that mess.

It is much easier to learn how to be a good safety than it is to be a good quarterback.

by Bjorno on Oct 11, 2009 2:53 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yes

The good ones get it early at either position, though.

by KC Viking on Oct 11, 2009 12:45 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

He won't be suspended

The folks over at AV type it out better than I could but in short since he is a 1st time offender it is only a fine.

by Jepp The Viking on Oct 9, 2009 11:24 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

You do the right thing!

So where do you go if you can’t drive home? You leave your car keys on the ground out side? What a F—— up law. He should be comended for doing the right thing! When will the mad mothers and law people get put into there place. YOU CAN"T MAKE PEOPLE STAY HOME ALL THERE LIVES! We need to get out and live with out being taken in to jail. Hell the only place you can smoke any more is your car! Just another way to control the people!

by Chuck forman on Oct 9, 2009 3:33 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

+1

One reason I will never live in MN again is what happened to me about 25 years ago. A cop threw an empty beer can in my car then busted me for open bottle. At the time I was poor and had no money to buy an attorney so I had to eat it. Even if I had it was my word against his, I lose…

it is better to be thought of as dumb then to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
Ben Franklin

by montana vikes fan on Oct 9, 2009 7:49 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

A dirty cop

in any state would have had the same result.

by KC Viking on Oct 9, 2009 8:40 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yea, you cannot judge a state by one bad seed.

I can attest as a former delivery driver, who spent plenty of time dealing with police, that most of them are good people.

by Bjorno on Oct 9, 2009 8:47 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Not to mention that if you were poor, the state of Minnesota would assign you a public defender who’s fee is consistent with your current income levels. Which if you were poor, you would likely not pay a cent.

And the fact that IF said officer was as unsavory as to do something like that, he would likely not even bother to show up for the court hearings.

by Bjorno on Oct 10, 2009 10:48 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Whats done is done

I know a lot of good police officers, but the law is stacked in favor of the bad ones as well. I was assigned a public deffender and the first words out of his mouth were I had dinner with him last week and I do not believe you. At that time and maybe still to this day the DA’s served every other six months as deffenders. Which in my opinion made for a bais against me or others that would have been in the same postion. I did learn from the incedent, that is always have the money to hire an attoreny or expect the worst. MN stacks the law so that you get fifteen tickets instead of one, you may beat most of them but you are going to pay. The level you pay is dependent upon how good of an attoney you can hire.

it is better to be thought of as dumb then to open your mouth and remove all doubt.
Ben Franklin

by montana vikes fan on Oct 11, 2009 7:04 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

No

So where do you go if you can’t drive home?

YOU CALL A CAB or get a ride (or hire a driver to take you and maybe your friends, too, to the establishments and home afterward).

The real Chuck Foreman would have known the correct answer. What a disgrace.

by KC Viking on Oct 9, 2009 8:41 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Either that, or he could have just hired the Limo driver for another hour.

by Bjorno on Oct 9, 2009 8:45 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

ced

we all make mistakes. he obviously knew he couldn’t drive and tried to do the right thing. as far as football goes i think he is playing great. no nonsense physical player i’d love to have on my roster.

by deadeye on Oct 9, 2009 8:33 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Yeah

He also has more options than most people in that situation. He doesn’t need to worry about an unexpected cab fare. Any friend of his would love to pick him up and/or drive whatever car he owns. The really scary detail is that he had sobered up enough during his drive home to have the sense to pull over.

He’s RICH! He could just pay a driver to take him and his friends to and from the bar! How drunk were his friends, I wonder?

It’s good he didn’t kill anyone, but he avoided that by luck, as he could have driven through who knows how many intersections before he was just sober enough to pull over (and still intoxicated enough to be illegal some amount of time after that).

This is no minor offense, and it should not be treated that way.

by KC Viking on Oct 9, 2009 8:38 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Could've been worse

If he had been driving drunk, hit and killed a pedestrian, he’d be on the hook for some hefty fines, a weregild, and 28 days of prison, and possibly a year’s suspension from playing.

Ah, ah,
We come from the land of the ice and snow,
From the midnight sun where the hot springs blow.
The hammer of the gods will drive our ships to new lands,
To fight the horde, singing and crying: Valhalla, I am coming!
SKOL!

by DCPurple on Oct 10, 2009 4:25 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

You mean he could have been less lucky

It’s the same thing to me. He should be charged, tried, and suspended on the demerits of his actions and the fact that the worst-case scenario was possible. There is NO excuse.

by KC Viking on Oct 10, 2009 10:57 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

You just want him off the field.

All kidding aside, there has to be at least SOME credit given to him for making the right decision. The bottom line is he stopped on the side of the road, knowing full well that any police officer driving by would stop for a car like his on the side of the road and that he would likely get a DWI. He knew that, and he still did what was right.

You can’t say the same for most people put in that position, especially when drinking.

Drinking and driving is a heavy subject for me. I lost a close friend to it recently. If someone had stopped and did what Cedric did, he would still be alive. You can’t ignore the intent, he did what was right and should be commended for it.

And then punished like anyone else who was caught in that kind of scenario.

by Bjorno on Oct 11, 2009 3:02 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

No.

I had thought that I was the only person in this thread who has lost someone due to drunk driving. Your friend could just as easily have run into Ced while he was so blind that he probably doesn’t remember the first stretch of that drive. How drunk must Griffin have been to leave uber-drunk, sober up to ridiculously drunk, but cognizant enough to pull over, and still be over the limit when the cop arrived later still? Dude was absolutely blitzed.

I think there is no such thing as a first offense in this area, but first times for getting caught. It’s not like Ced’s waiting for his first few NFL paychecks to go through, after all. He had the $ to do the right thing and still insisted on risking other peoples’ lives. His friends may have been stone cold sober, but I doubt that, too. A slap on the wrist does nothing. Drunk driving is not ok just because it’s in a less populated area or at an off-peak time of day. It is always the same narcissistic disregard for public safety.

At the very least, Griffin should pay the same price as others, and I’m not optimistic that that will happen.

by KC Viking on Oct 11, 2009 12:44 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs