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Four wives of former NFL players have weighed in on the recent shocking domestic violence video involving Ray Rice and wife Janay, which spurred the Baltimore Ravens to cut the running back from the team's roster.
The clip, taken from a New Jersey casino elevator surveillance tape that was recorded in February, was posted on TMZ on Monday. It showed the football star punching his wife, who was his fiancée at the time, during an argument. In March, he was indicted on assault charges. He and Palmer, who are parents to a 2-year-old daughter, wed a day later. Janay declined to testify against her husband and the charges were dropped.
"I don't think it's too hard for me to understand why Janay would stay with Ray after everything we've seen, Dawn Neufeld, wife of former NFL tight end Ryan Neufeld and who appeared on VH1's Football Wives, said on the Today show on Wednesday. Unfortunately, I was raised in a home where there was some domestic violence and I think women stay with abusers for many, many reasons."
The new video footage sparked an online backlash and even spurred a White House response about domestic violence, made during a press briefing. The NFL, which initially suspended Rice from two games following the assault charges, then suspended him indefinitely, while the Ravens released him.
Palmer, who appears in the video to have spit at Rice before he punched her, recently took to Instagram to voice her support for "the man I love" and slammed "the media & unwanted options from the public" for "mak(ing) us relive a moment in our lives that we regret every day."
Michelle Rivera, wife of former NFL offensive lineman Marco Rivera, said, "Thank goodness I was not in a situation to make that choice, but I think I would probably end up being one to stay, because you assume that role. You're there to support, and you uphold the image that you feel is necessary for your family."
Melani Ismail, wife of former NFL wide receiver Raghib Ismail, said she thinks Rice "needs some help." Mioshi Johnson, wife of Rice's former Ravens teammate Chris Johnson, said the married pair are "good friends" of her and her husband. She criticized the media's coverage of the situation and said the confrontation was "out of character for both of them."
"They are not violent people," she said. "They are very loving, doting over each other, over their daughter."