Has anyone heard here yet about how AP got arrested for... uh, resisting arrest in a Houston nightclub recently? What's that? All of you? And what's that follow up you're all shouting- it sounds like "we're sick of hearing about this!!!"?
Well TOO BAD. Front page privileges MWAHAHAHAHAHA!
No seriously, I do have a query here for my fellow Viking fandom. There are two interesting current things going on with this: thing the first being that it's been reported numerous times that the expectation is Peterson will receive a simple fine for this incident, and that's it. It can be reasonably expected that a.) the NFL, considering Peterson's reputation as well as some of the murky details of this case, will not take any action themselves, and that b.) Peterson can probably pay the fine without having to sell any of his property or possessions. To quote fearless leader... HOWEVAH, the second thing would be that Peterson has hired a top-notch lawyer to represent himself in this matter.
Now, Peterson might have hired said lawyer (Rusty Hardin) unknowing that a fine would be the maximum punishment, and it should also be pointed out that a fine is what is expected- there's no solid evidence that that's all that's going to happen. Again, HOWEVAH- Peterson might have also hired the dude in order to outright fight the charges regardless of the punishment involved, and speculation's a-rampant that he may even attempt a counter-suit.
So what should Adrian Peterson do? On hand, he could pay the fine and let it go. Doing so doesn't mean he's guilty (well, it kinda does legally, but not in the court of public opinion) and he would be free to continue to claim events are not as the Houston Police Department claimed. Given Peterson's stellar reputation, chances are good this will be forgotten unless something else occurs in the future; plus, fine paid or not, most people will probably generally believe Peterson's side of the story regardless.
On the other hand, Peterson could seek to outright clear his name completely- both legally and in the court of public opinion. With a guy who has a reputation that he should be rightfully proud of, any blemish on an otherwise spotless record (speeding tickets aside...) might really chafe the dude. Fighting the charges and then leveling a counter-suit would certainly be a step towards this goal: HOWEVAH it would also drag the case out and keep it in the public's mind for a longer period of time. Certainly, if there is merit to the Houston PD's side of the story, then this route would risk evidence coming out to this regard, and AP's rep would be tarnished. (Of course, evidence might come out anyways- that tends to happen when TMZ is reporting on the case.)
So what should Peterson do, assuming that the worst punishment will be a simple fine? Should he pay it and just let it go, or should he fight it outright and seek to clear his name once and for all?