Chargers' Merriman arrested in domestic call
Ex-Terp accused of choking girlfriend Tila Tequila, who was taken to hospital


The Associated Press

2:47 p.m. EDT, September 6, 2009
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SAN DIEGO - San Diego Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman was arrested Sunday and accused of choking and restraining his girlfriend, reality TV star Tila Tequila, as she tried to leave his Southern California home.

Tequila, 27, signed a citizen's arrest warrant, charging Merriman (Maryland) with battery and false imprisonment, San Diego County Sheriff's Lt. Gary Steadman said.

Deputies responded about 3:45 a.m. to Merriman's house in Poway, north of San Diego, after a woman called to say she was choked by the player and physically restrained when she had tried to leave, according to a Sheriff's Department statement.

Merriman, 25, was taken into custody. Authorities declined to say whether he had posted bail or been released, pending an afternoon news conference.

Tequila was taken to a hospital. Her condition was not immediately available.

Tequila, whose real name is Tila Nguyen, is best known for "A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila," which ran for two seasons on MTV. The bisexual dating show featured men and women vying for Tequila's affections. She has also modeled for Playboy and other men's magazines.

Scott E. Leemon, an attorney for Tequila, said in a statement that neither she nor her representatives would comment publicly on the incident.

Merriman's agent, Tom Condon, said he hadn't heard about the arrest when contacted by The Associated Press.

Chargers general manager A.J. Smith didn't immediately return a call seeking comment.

Merriman was the 12th overall pick out in the 2005 draft, and had 39.5 sacks in his first three years. The three-time Pro Bowl selection was getting back into shape after missing nearly all of last season with a knee injury. He played little during preseason games. The Chargers' season begins a week from Monday night at Oakland.

Smith often speaks of signing "character" players, yet the Chargers have had their share of off-field problems in recent seasons.

In 2006, there were seven run-ins with the law by San Diego players, including linebacker Steve Foley's shooting by an off-duty police officer who suspected him of drunken driving.

Merriman was suspended four games for testing positive for steroids in 2006, and linebacker Stephen Cooper was suspended by the NFL for the first four games of the 2008 season after testing positive for a banned stimulant.

Associated Press Writer Christopher Weber in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
[Edited 9/6/09 12:56pm]

Sounds like 'roid rage to me

Who was it that said they were going to have to choke a bitch?

Damn, that was a funny line.

RodeoSchro said:

Wayne brady on the dave chapele show...

but this is a sad story...

I can't lie...she looks so chokeable

not that it's right or anything.

BklynBabe said:

do U mean chokable in the heat of passion...
or chokable like "choke her till her eyes pop out of her head"

I think they both just might fit

Obama should use stimulus dollars to build an NFL prison.

Hey, it'd create jobs.

nyse said:

chokeable like "shut the fuck up before I choke the living shit out of you"
I don't find her attractive at all, looks or personality...

the bad side of mankind.

noone deserves to be abused, no matter how worthless to society he/she is

SCNDLS said:

But you can't do 'roids in the NFL.
Sounds like a man dealing with a crazy one rage . . . .lol
Who dates someone named 'Tequila'? Really?
(That she has body or is pretty is no excuse. Strippers and hookers have body and can be quite attractive also.) Disclaimer: I haven't seen her, just read the news report.

SUPRMAN said:

You're so cute . . .

Shawne has already been suspended for using steroids while in the NFL.

SCNDLS said:

Exactly. He can't still be using them can he? That would be rather dumb and career threatening.

SUPRMAN said:

Are you serious??? You do know that there are ways around getting busted. You really think all those guys are naturally that size???

BklynBabe said:

c'mon give her a break...Her personality is trashy. and her body and face is
plastic but,,,,she has a nyse smile

nyse said:

her smart ass mouth is gonna get her smacked one of these days (note to Tila:stay away from Chris Brown). I could totally see her being so annoying that you fingers just want to creep around her neck and stop her remaining brain cell from firing off.

ur 2 funny

SCNDLS said:

No that's what weights are for.
The only way to get around getting busted is developing something that a test doesn't detect. (Ask Barry Bonds.)

I don't believe that steroids are still widely used in the NFL. I think the suspensions are getting through.
Another problem with steroid use is increased injuries as muscles get too big for the ligaments and bones to support.

SUPRMAN said:

Oh goodness.

How do you know they aren't using something undetectable or various means to mask the results??? Just because they aren't caught doesn't mean they aren't using something (ask Barry Bonds).

It's obvious to me that most of the big guys in the NFL are juicing. Many of players that rely on size for their positions get MUCH bigger when they enter the league versus when they were in college and then they get drastically smaller when they stop playing. Almost immediately. That's more than just lifting weights and they are not able to naturally maintain the bulk.

And how do you know there haven't been more injuries that could be attibuted to roids? It's not like they keep records or stats to track that shit. Not to mention domestic abuse is a tell tale sign of a steroid user. But you go right ahead and believe that all NFL players are that size from lifting weight alone.
[Edited 9/6/09 20:12pm]

Steroids in the NFL, but no steroid scandals

If this were baseball, there would be enough anguish and outrage to last a season. Had it happened during an Olympics, the world would be talking about it for years.

There's nothing quite as juicy as a good steroid scandal -- unless, of course, it happens to take place in the NFL.

Then it's just business as usual.

The news circulating around the league that six to eight players, including some star talent, are under investigation for using diuretics to mask steroid use largely has been met with a collective yawn by fans more interested in the status of Tony Romo's pinky and Mike Singletary's mouth.

Sure, there might be some concern over the possibility of the Saints' Deuce McCallister being suspended for four games, but that's pretty much limited to people who have him on their fantasy teams. And who has even heard of Houston long snapper Bryan Pittman, much less worried about whether he was trying to get an unfair edge on the tackle across the line from him?

It's the NFL, after all. The assumption already is that everyone from Bill Belichick on down would cheat if they thought it would guarantee them a job or a win.

The fact is fans don't seem to care if NFL players take steroids or simply assume the 300-pound behemoths who run like track stars already do. Unlike baseball, they accept it as a given that players will do whatever they must to get ahead in a violent sport where every Sunday could be their last game.

That's why when Shawne Merriman tested positive for steroids two years ago the biggest roar came from fans welcoming him back from his suspension. The biggest controversy was whether he still should be considered for postseason awards.

When Rodney Harrison was suspended for admitting to obtaining human growth hormone, New England fans were only worried he might not come back soon enough to help the team win a Super Bowl.

Expect the same reaction out of Minnesota. Vikings fans already troubled by their team's 3-4 start now must worry what will happen in the wake of a Fox Sports report that Pro Bowl defensive tackles Kevin Williams and Pat Williams are among those who have tested positive for a weight-loss diuretic banned by the NFL because it can be used to hide steroid use.

NFL tackles by nature are big guys, and the two Vikings are no different. Kevin Williams is listed at 311 pounds this season by the Vikings, while Pat Williams tips the scale at 317.

In the real world, both would be prime candidates for weight-loss drugs. But in the supersized NFL the object among linemen is usually to become bigger, not smaller. So if the reports turn out to be true, the natural assumption will be they were not trying to get rid of a few unsightly love handles by using the drugs.

Vikings fans might be angry if the linemen are suspended, but they'll be more angry that the linemen got caught and perhaps cost the team a playoff berth, not that they might have been juiced in the first place.

Players caught doping invariably will say they took it unknowingly, apologize to everyone involved and then serve their suspensions. Others taking diuretics who haven't been caught will switch to undetectable human growth hormone or hope their time to test doesn't come up.

The cycle will repeat itself, just as it has since the NFL began testing for steroids in the late 1980s amid estimates that half the linemen in the league were using them. The testing has gotten better over the years, but so have the steroids and the methods used to evade positive tests that can damage both careers and bank accounts.

In the meantime, players have confounded nature by becoming bigger and bigger. Thirty years ago, only a handful of NFL players weighed over 300 pounds, while today nearly a third of players are that big.

Numbers don't lie, but the most important number for the NFL is No. 1 -- as in the most popular sports league by far in the country. Entire teams could be busted for steroids and that dynamic wouldn't change.

It won't be long before the players currently under investigation have their due process and the NFL announces some suspensions. They'll be duly noted in the media, and everyone will move on.

There might be steroids in the NFL, but one thing is for sure. There are no steroid scandals.

Great article. The league has considered the fallout from steroids users -- injuries, assaults, etc. -- collateral damage. It has to do better.

Goodell fancies himself a rule enforcer. It'd be better for the sport (not to mention for the kids headed to the league) if he instead were a game changer.

But it's an op-ed that doesn't conclusively prove anything other than what is already known.
He implies they must be using but other than those who have been suspended by the NFL he can't say. But then neither can I.
I can't discount steroid use by NFL players but I don't think its prevalent any longer. The days of Mandarich are over.
I think they used to be prevalent in the NFL but no longer.
Something to get past a test has to be a designer molecule which costs money

In a statement e-mailed to The San Diego Union-Tribune late Sunday night, Merriman tried to clear his name in light of the serious accusations by Nguyen.
On September 6, 2009 the San Diego Sheriffs Department responded to a citizens complaint that was initiated by Tila Nguyen (aka Tila Tequila). I was taken into custody based upon that complaint. At the time, I was concerned about her welfare given the intoxicated state she appeared to be in and I encouraged her to stay until safe transportation could be provided. We would all do our best to help a friend if we considered their actions to be detrimental to their personal safety. I in no way caused any harm to Ms Nguyen, however, paramedics were called and she was examined but no injuries were reported. She was released and has since returned to Los Angeles, California.

There have been no charges filed against me. I want to thank the San Diego Sheriffs Department for their professionalism. I will continue to cooperate fully with the Department and I look forward to clearing my name regarding these false allegations. I want to put this behind me so I can continue to focus on a successful season for the San Diego Chargers.

Fury said:

I heard this last night on the news, too. I hope that's the case. Maybe Obama can hold off on that prison.



Nahh....

ThreadBare said:

What do ya'll expect him to say? "Yeah, I tried to choke that bitch"

He's trying not to get suspended again so he's gonna say whatever it takes and at this point it's just her word against his. That statement doesn't even sound like Shawne's ass and is decidedly one-sided.

SCNDLS said:

Now, now, Sandals. I'm sure the nice Mr. Merriman's public relations person crafted nothing but a factual statement. I like how it even closes with his focus on the start of the season. Very professional.

ThreadBare said:

This is my favorite part

"At the time, I was concerned about her welfare given the intoxicated state she appeared to be in and I encouraged her to stay until safe transportation could be provided. We would all do our best to help a friend if we considered their actions to be detrimental to their personal safety."

Yeah, that sounds like Shawne's crazy ass

Translation:

When that drunk bitch showed up at my crib I told her to get the fuck out my house before I choked her drunk ass. She didn't listen.

SCNDLS said:

LOL
Of course it's from a publicist. Aren't they usually?

I believe him. She was drunk and got pissed and knew she could get police and press response from the allegations.
Typical manipulative female. Not that all women are (I'm assuming . . .)
And typically, they are going to end up back together . . . .
[Edited 9/7/09 17:43pm]

SUPRMAN said:

First you push up on my man then you come up in here talking some nonsense. I see you're just not gonna make it easy to get along with your ass.

SUPRMAN said:

even with the edit, still jacked up.

i love how even domestic violence is funny on the org.