Jacksonville Jaguars’ Dan Skuta not charged with battery
By Luke Sims
Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Dan Skuta was arrested for battery in mid June but will not be charged by the prosecution.
The prosecution will be not be pursuing charges against Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Dan Skuta for battery (per ESPN). This comes after a June 19 arrest when he was originally charged with misdemeanor battery for pushing a woman against a window.
The Jaguars initially declined to comment on the arrest, making a statement to that effect. Some in the Jaguars’ fan base called for Skuta’s job early on, noting it to look like an “open and shut case” already.
While the NFL has often gotten it wrong in the court of public opinion, especially with players who abuse others, particularly women, Skuta is walking free after the prosecution – not the public – have let him off the hook. How this will play with fans of the Jaguars and those who want greater accountability from NFL players is yet to be seen.
The NFL under commissioner Roger Goodell hasn’t been completely lax in administering “justice” in the NFL fiefdom, but too often it seems that players are above the law. Writing after the arrest, B&T’s Daniel Lago states:
"it’s difficult to predict the fallout from this situation. The NFL has been fairly consistent with punishing players involved in physical altercations, but clearly the context is important. There’s a chance nothing comes of this but it’s far from over."
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That fallout, and the fallout of future instances like this in which the details seem clear but the people administering the law may see it as more murky, will continue to haunt the league for a long time. There are too many variables in too many different cases for all of us fans to simply determine who is guilty and who isn’t on the face value of each situation.
If there was ever an open and shut or clear cut case, it would be prudent for the NFL and its teams to take quick steps to move on from that player. Skuta, it seems, has at least skated by for now.
Looking forward, the Jaguars will have to move on from this unwelcome distraction. For a team that is so focused on finally turning in a winning performance, anything that isn’t football related is a detractor from potential greatness. It will be interesting to see how the team puts Skuta’s distraction behind them.