Two NFL players were arrested in recent days as part of domestic violence criminal cases. On Monday night, Rams offensive lineman Alaric Jackson was arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of felony domestic violence, first reported by NBC4. Earlier on Monday, Broncos outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper entered a plea of not guilty in a Colorado court after he was charged with misdemeanor domestic violence.
Jackson was arrested at his San Fernando Valley home, NBC4 reported. Police sources told the TV station that Jackson and a woman got in a verbal fight and, when Jackson believed the woman was recording him, he tried to take her phone out of her hand. Per NBC4, "investigators said the woman had scratch marks on her arms."
The Los Angeles district attorney's office told the Los Angeles Times it was reviewing the Jackson case. Jackson previously was suspended for two games in 2024 for a violation of the NFL's personal conduct policy. At the time, no specifics were given by the league or team about the nature of the violation. A year later, a woman sued Jackson saying he had filmed her without her consent while they were having sex. In her lawsuit, the woman said she told the NFL what happened. The case was dismissed with prejudice at the request of the woman and Jackson.
In Colorado, Cooper and his girlfriend were both arrested late Thursday by Parker police. He was charged criminal mischief between $300 and $999 and domestic violence, both misdemeanors. The girlfriend was charged with criminal mischief of less than $300, a petty offense, and misdemeanor domestic violence. Cooper pleaded not guilty on Monday, the Denver Post reported. His girlfriend is scheduled for a court appearance on June 16.
For context, Colorado has a mandatory arrest policy specific to domestic-violence cases. So does California.
In an arrest affidavit, the investigating officer for Parker police wrote that the couple had been in a relationship "on and off" for about four years. That night, they got in a verbal fight after the girlfriend confronted him with allegations of cheating. At one point, the girlfriend got up from the couch, grabbed Cooper's phone, and threw it across the living room, leaving a dent in the wall and damaging the phone's protective case, Officer Elijah Hamdeed wrote.
The girlfriend went to pick up the phone from the floor and, when she did, she also was able to start going through the device. This is described in the affidavit as her seeing "content out of her own curiosity for closure or clarity." Cooper wanted his phone back. Per Hamdeed's affidavit, this led to a physical fight near the apartment's front door, with Cooper saying he wanted his phone back. From the document:
Jonathan [sic] told Officer C Smith that he grabbed [his girlfriend] by her upper arms and was able to get his phone back from her possession. However, Jonathan advised that after he got his phone back, [she] kept trying to get his phone from him. Jonathan told Officer C Smith that he braced his neck against [her] neck to prevent her from getting his phone.
As of this report, there is no probable cause for harassment or assault charges given conflicting statements and lack of specific physical evidence. Continuing, Jonathan was able to retrieve his phone back from [her] possession.
Cooper told police that he then went to the couch, grabbed his girlfriend's phone, and told her that, if she did not leave, he would break it. She did not leave, at which point, per the affidavit, "he bit [the girlfriend's] phone causing disabling damage." Police wrote that the iPhone 17 had a cracked screen.
Up until this point, the affidavits for Cooper and the girlfriend were almost identical. But this is where the narrative for Cooper ended. For the girlfriend, her arrest affidavit continued with more information written by another investigator, Officer Victoria Rodriguez:
[She] explained to me that she had grabbed Jonathan's phone and tossed it across the room. [She] then proceeded towards the front door with her belonging's planning to leave. [She] picked up Jonathan's phone and unlocked it to see the messages he had with other individuals. [She] said that Jonathan then proceeded towards her, grabbed her by the neck with one hand and lifted her off of her feet and up against the wall. [She] described this as being held up against the wall, with her feet no longer touching the ground. [She] told me that Jonathan held her up in the air, against the wall for approximately one minute. During this time, Jonathan grabbed his phone back from her. Jonathan then let go of [her] but then proceeded to pick her up and throw her back on the ground approximately three times.
[She] explained that Jonathan punched at the wall next to her face. [She]
said she was scared and ran deeper into the apartment. Jonathan continuously told [her] to leave. Jonathan then grabbed [her]
and tugged her towards the floor. [She] described that she was unable to get up. Jonathan then told [her] to get up and leave or he would break her phone. Jonathan then put [her] phone into his mouth and bit it, breaking [her] phone. [She] expressed to me that there are messages and voice memos from her deceased mother that are not replaceable on the phone. [She] told me that Jonathan has had previous knowledge of this. [She] then got up and left the apartment.When asked, [she] said that she did not lose consciousness and did not experience seeing spots, something that is consistent with being strangled.
Rodriguez wrote that she saw a small mark on the woman's neck, where she said Cooper had grabbed her, as well as scratches on the woman's arm and a small cut on her hand. However, Rodriguez wrote that the marks and scratches did not appear consistent with what the woman had told her.
Afterward, police requested charges for both Cooper and his girlfriend. She also was taken to a local hospital for a forensic nursing examination, per her arrest affidavit.
After entering his not guilty plea on Monday, Cooper posted Bible verses to his Instagram stories, captured by the Daily Mail, telling his followers: "I realize posting a Bible quote right after something very serious happens does not just mean everything is okay. I apologize to my family, to my friends and my community... and so many others. Sincerely, I apologize. This situation is not who I am."
