A new report that dives into the personal life of Adrian Peterson raises even more questions about his moral character. We already know the Minnesota Vikings running back has found his name at the center of a child abuse scandal, but some investigative reporting from the Minneapolis Star Tribune reveals that those allegations may only be a fraction of the off-field issues Peterson has had.
For starters, there are reasons to believe money raised by Peterson’s charitable organization, the All Day Foundation, doesn’t always make it to the proper recipients. In 2011, Peterson was at the center of an alleged incident at the Eden Prairie hotel. As we learned in a previous report (more details of that here), a woman had accused Peterson of sexual assault.
According to a 38-page police report that was obtained by the Star Tribune, a relative of Peterson who lives with him in Eden Prairie told investigators that he paid for the hotel room using Peterson’s company credit card from his foundation. The night was reportedly filled with “drinking, arguing and sex” and involved Peterson, his younger brother, a minor and four women.
As the night wore on, the report says, one woman who said she knew Peterson previously became upset when she saw him having sex with another woman. She started an argument that lasted at least an hour. According to the report, when she told him that she was “emotionally attached to him,” Peterson reminded her that he was engaged to another woman and had a baby.
The next day one of the women filed a police complaint that was investigated for months…
Peterson later showed up at police headquarters with his face hidden by a hooded sweatshirt to provide evidence of his innocence. His attorney also said Peterson volunteered to take a polygraph test and passed. Prosecutors ultimately decided not to file charges.
Then there are the questions about Peterson’s charity. For example, the All Day Foundation’s 2011 financial report states that the charity brought in $247,064 in total revenue but that only three organizations received money. A fourth organization was simply listed as “clothing for needy families” with no number of recipients specified.
The All Day Foundation’s 2009 report indicates that the largest gift was a $70,000 donation to Straight From the Heart Ministries in Laurel, Md. Donna Farley, the president and founder of the organization, denies ever receiving money from Peterson’s charity.
“There have been no outside [contributions] other than people in my own circle,” Farley told the Star Tribune. “Adrian Peterson — definitely not.”
The same was reportedly true of the North Texas Food Bank in Dallas, another organization that was listed as a recipient on the 2009 financial records. Chief philanthropy officer Colleen Brinkmann could not recall ever receiving money from the All Day Foundation and was not even familiar with Peterson.
The entire report is worth reading. While Peterson has almost always escaped charges, it’s obvious his image is not as squeaky clean as we previously thought. He has been investigated for allegedly injuring two of his sons and has supposedly fathered at least six children out of wedlock. While that’s not a crime, it doesn’t exactly paint a picture of responsibility.
