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Benson arrested in Texas (1 Viewer)

Chicago Bears running back Cedric Benson was charged with failing a sobriety test while operating a 30-foot boat, then resisting arrest before being hit with pepper spray and dragged ashore by officers.

Benson faces charges of boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest after the incident Saturday night on Lake Travis, Travis County Sheriff's Department spokesman Roger Wade said Sunday.

Benson was released from jail early Sunday on a $14,500 bond. The charges are class B misdemeanors, each punishable by up to six months in jail and a $2,000 fine. A call to Benson's agent was not immediately returned.

Benson was operating the boat with 15 passengers aboard when he was stopped by a Lower Colorado River Authority officer for a random safety inspection. He failed a field sobriety test on the officer's boat and was uncooperative when the officer tried to take him ashore, the authority said.

"When Benson did not pass the test, he presented himself as a threat to the officer and argued about whether or not he would be taken to land to have a follow-up field sobriety test performed on land and refused to put on a life jacket," the authority said in a statement.

The officer had to use pepper spray to subdue Benson. He then refused to leave the officer's boat and authorities had to drag him to a car to be taken to the Travis County jail, the authority said.
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Associated Press
 
GregR said:
You know there are a few laws that I won't really bat an eye about someone running afoul of, and boating while intoxicated is one of them.But then resisting arrest to where you get pepper sprayed is just idiotic.
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It actually bothers me more. If you are Cedric Benson how do you not have Johnny Posse driving the boat? What a maroon
 
My Gosh I just knew that is well worth soaking up every second of that last season that Sweetness played! If Forte cannot take the reins we are going to be taking a top 5 pick in the 2009 NFL draft!

 
ICON211 said:
RBM said:
This might be the last straw for this guy. Friggin shame. I was as excited as anybody when the Bears drafted this guy. What a waste of talent
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fixed
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Nah, you're wrong. The guy had alot of talent, just no heart. Great blend of size, power and enough speed. But it just goes to show that these talented guys cant get by in the big leagues on just talent alone.
 
skillz said:
Routilla said:
Slinger said:
Matt Forte is looking better every day.
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:popcorn:
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I still don't get why everyone keeps talking this guy up. Granted Benson is terrible, but the Bears offensive line is not good, they have a poor QB, and lost their two starting WR's over the offseason. The offense is not going to provide a lot of TD opportunities for whoever the starting RB tis his year. Last year, everyone kept calling for Adrian Peterson to get the start over Benson and when he finally did after Benson's injury he didn't do much either. That is because the Bears offense is a fantasy wasteland. Forte may end up starting but people really need to temper their expectations for him this year.
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One of the big reasons is that Forte may be a three down back. There are very few of those in the league. The Bears line should be better than they were last year. I agree with all of your points about the Bears offense, but the Bears are definitely going to try to re-establish the run this year. If you can draft a guy who is going to get 300 carries you have to take that chance.
 
Power Monster said:
My Gosh I just knew that is well worth soaking up every second of that last season that Sweetness played! If Forte cannot take the reins we are going to be taking a top 5 pick in the 2009 NFL draft!
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This is why I thought the Bears should have drafted another back later in the draft. Maybe they will get someone as an undrafted free agent or a veteran free agent. There are options out there, like Lamont Jordan for example. I'd love to dump Benson and add Jordan. I don't think Benson makes it to training camp. I think Musa Smith is out there. Shaun Alexander is available, but I don't think he is a big help.
 
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Benson says things happened very differently:

Benson said an officer asked him to board the police boat for an abbreviated sobriety test during which he recited the alphabet. Benson said he recited it without any mistakes. He said he was also asked to count forward and backward "at least 20 times." Benson said he kept asking the officers why they were doing this, while the police boat slowly drove away from where his own boat was parked.

Benson said that after the abbreviated sobriety test, the officer didn't charge him or say he'd failed the test, but that they wanted to take him in to land for more testing. "Why? I've passed every test," Benson said he asked the officer.

Benson said he was polite, even calling the officer "sir," and that he never cursed or yelled until the officer suddenly put down his flashlight and pepper sprayed him in the eyes.
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With regard to the police claim that Benson refused to wear a life jacket, Benson said he was never offered one. He said police threw one over his head before departing the boat.

Benson said he was carried and dragged to a squad car once reaching land, but not because he was resisting officers. He said it was because his ankles and feet were kicked out from under him, and so he couldn't walk. Benson said he pleaded with police. "Please sir, let me just walk off the boat like a man," Benson said he told the officer.

Benson said he was repeatedly sprayed in the face with a water hose until he could no longer speak. Benson said he begged the officer to stop.

"I did nothing wrong; I didn't resist arrest, didn't curse and wasn't drunk," Benson told NBC 5.
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http://www.nbc5.com/news/16155362/detail.html?dl=mainclick
 
FreeBaGeL said:
http://www.nbc5.com/news/16155362/detail.html?dl=mainclick
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Also from that article:
Benson said he and a dozen family members and friends, including his mother, took his 37-foot boat out for the second time this spring. And for the second time, he was pulled over by police, Benson said.

"We were in a cove with a lot of other boats filled with young people partying," Benson said. There was alcohol on board his boat but he was not drunk, Benson said. When police boarded to check if the boat met all safety standards, it did -- enough life jackets for everyone on board, working fire extinguisher and a proper license, Benson said.
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Cookiemonster said:
KingAlfred said:
Thinking of taking Matt Forte with 3rd rookie pick over R. Mendenhall....There is still obviously Fast Willie at Fort Pitt....but in Windy City....there is really nobodyelse who could be full time back now.
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Please be the new guy in my league w/ the 1.03! :lmao:
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And I wish you were the new guy in my league. Someone who assumes that just a couple weeks after the draft you are sure that you know exactly how the rookie draft should go and thus how these guys are going to do in their professional careers.
 
More should come from this since he had a boat full of family members.

Should be plenty of witnesses to corroborate one side or the other.

 
I lived in Austin for 4 years and although at this point there is really know way to tell who's side of the story is true, I will say that the LCRA and the Austin PD for that matter have a horrible reputation for abusing their powers. I have personally witnessed both organizations use excessive force and wrongfully imprison people. It would not suprise me at all if this was the case. Now I personally think Cedric Bunsen is a total waste of a football player and a fantasy football tool, but his side of the story sounds awfully similiar to many incidents that I have seen both out on lake Travis and 6th St. Ask anybody that lives in Austin and they would probably agree with me.

 
I know I have said this other threads but this reminds me of the Simpsons episode where Homer got drunk and looks down Maude's dress. The next day you see what he recalls and then what actually happened.

I am sure there are toxicology tests results here somewhere that will show where the truth is at. If he is sober as he says he was, then the police MAY have some explaining to do, but I will withhold my opinion until we see those.

 
skillz said:
Routilla said:
Slinger said:
Matt Forte is looking better every day.
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:goodposting:
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I still don't get why everyone keeps talking this guy up. Granted Benson is terrible, but the Bears offensive line is not good, they have a poor QB, and lost their two starting WR's over the offseason. The offense is not going to provide a lot of TD opportunities for whoever the starting RB tis his year. Last year, everyone kept calling for Adrian Peterson to get the start over Benson and when he finally did after Benson's injury he didn't do much either. That is because the Bears offense is a fantasy wasteland. Forte may end up starting but people really need to temper their expectations for him this year.
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:rolleyes: :wub:As for Benson's story, I could totally see more of that being true rather than false. Texas police are second only to the LAPD in terms of terrible rep.
 
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gianmarco said:
Riffraff said:
More should come from this since he had a boat full of family members. Should be plenty of witnesses to corroborate one side or the other.
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Yeah, I wonder which side his family members will be on :lmao:
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So, are you saying they can't be used as witnesses in a court of law?I'd bet all of them can say that Benson passed all the tests, since he did them on his own boat in front of everyone.It'll get thrown out if he passed a breathalyser.Better to have a dozen alibis than none at all. You can roll your eyes on that if you wish.
 
IMO, the county prosecutor's office may have an uphill battle on this one, given the circumstances relayed thus far.

 
Riffraff said:
gianmarco said:
Riffraff said:
More should come from this since he had a boat full of family members.

Should be plenty of witnesses to corroborate one side or the other.
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Yeah, I wonder which side his family members will be on :rolleyes:
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So, are you saying they can't be used as witnesses in a court of law?I'd bet all of them can say that Benson passed all the tests, since he did them on his own boat in front of everyone.

It'll get thrown out if he passed a breathalyser.

Better to have a dozen alibis than none at all.

You can roll your eyes on that if you wish.
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Huh? Of course they can be used as witnesses. But you said "should be plenty of witnesses to corroborate one side or the other". And I'm saying which side do you think they'd corroborate? Pretty obvious.
 
As a Bears fan (as well as personally), I can't stand Benson. However, I've been on the receiving end of cops BS enough to side with him on this one. For some reason, I believe him more than the cops...

 
gdg76 said:
As a Bears fan (as well as personally), I can't stand Benson. However, I've been on the receiving end of cops BS enough to side with him on this one. For some reason, I believe him more than the cops...
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me too. I still think he should be cut, but not because of this.
 
mozzy84 said:
At that point, Benson started yelling for his mother, but was so far away from his own boat no one could hear, Benson said.
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mooooommmmy help!
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This can't have happened, right? If it did, can you imagine what Lambeau is going to sound like behind the Bears' bench if he returns this year?
 
I live in Austin, and the Lake Travis water police have an even worse reputation than the Austin cops. I've seen it myself before, and I've heard dozens of stories about those pricks, so I would tend to believe that Benson's account is not only plausible, but likely colser to the actual truth than the police report. And the mug photo is bad, but the guy was maced, how's he supposed to look? For fantasy purposes though, I doubt this has much impact one way or the other. Benson was not likely to be a good fantasy back regardless.

 
I think this incident showed that he has been working hard this offseason. It took two or three guys (cops) to tackle him this past weekend, while last year it only took one guy to tackle him. You are the man!!!

 
Hawk said:
I live in Austin, and the Lake Travis water police have an even worse reputation than the Austin cops. I've seen it myself before, and I've heard dozens of stories about those pricks, so I would tend to believe that Benson's account is not only plausible, but likely colser to the actual truth than the police report. And the mug photo is bad, but the guy was maced, how's he supposed to look? For fantasy purposes though, I doubt this has much impact one way or the other. Benson was not likely to be a good fantasy back regardless.
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I wouldn't be surprised if the water cops were overly aggressive, but it doesn't give Benson reason not to cooperate. As a professional athlete (NFL - not for long) though he should have known better.
 
Let's disect the case a little.

It was only Benson's second trip here with his boat. He's probably an amateur boater trying to have fun with his toy and family during the offseason. His first problem was just being in unfamiliar territory more than anything else.

He was clearly argueing with the police. Yet he wasnt totally uncooperative if he was following the police to shore (or wherever they were takeing him away from his group). My guess is he was being very loud and vocal. I'm not getting the impression that he tried to run away or fight back. He should have put on the lifejacket but that isnt resisting arrest. He's a big guy who was argueing with them, not wanting to take a breathalizer, & didnt put on his lifejacket. That's probably why he got pepper sprayed.

I'm sure he was drinking. He might not have been totally wasted, but he was drinking and being vocal. The police went to test him and that's how it all started.

He says the boat was parked at the time. It probably was. He owned the boat and may or may not have been at the wheel. There were a lot of other people with him but I dont see him argueing that he had a designated operator.

What I dont know is if he ever did take the breathalizer or if he got cited for refuseing it.

Given Benson's Wunderlick, none of this surprises me. It wasnt intelligent and somebody without a good lawyer is going to get the DUI. I doubt the resisting arrest will stick though. I'm sure he also has a good lawyer.

 
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Hawk said:
I live in Austin, and the Lake Travis water police have an even worse reputation than the Austin cops. I've seen it myself before, and I've heard dozens of stories about those pricks, so I would tend to believe that Benson's account is not only plausible...
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Agree with Hawk on this point. I said earlier that this kind of charge wouldn't make me bat an eye generally, and especially in Austin and the Hill Country. If someone is being dangerous or seems to be unsafely intoxicated authorities should be getting involved. But that doesn't always seem to be what goes on in that area. Plenty of areas that just try to impose their Baptist beliefs about alcohol on people through the cops there, and that seems to happen on the water a lot especially.He wasn't even stopped for doing something, it was a "random safety inspection". I imagine the truth is somewhere between Benson and the cops, but I have no problem believing that he passed their initial tests and such and the cops may have acted inappropriately.
 
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