Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay has been hit with a six-game suspension effective 5 p.m. tomorrow as a result of his March DUI arrest.
Irsay’s violation of the NFL’s personal conduct policy also cost him $500,000, the maximum allowable unless the commissioner obtains approval for a harsher fine from all the other team owners.
He is also banned from Colts offices, games, practices, or the team’s training facility or attending any NFL meetings or events. Interviews are also off limits during the NFL suspension.
A few hours prior to the NFL announcement, in Hamilton County, Ind., court today, Irsay, 55, pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count of operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Irsay will serve a one-year term of probation, including random drug testing, along with a one-year suspension of his driver’s license. He is not allowed to get anywhere near alcohol during the same time period. The judge suspended a 60-day jail term, which included credit for time served of two days.
As The Inquisitr previously reported , cops spotted the football exec going at a slow rate of speed, suddenly coming to a complete stop in the travel lane and failing to signal, which prompted them to pull him over. Police found numerous prescription bottles in Jim Irsay’s car, along with a large amount of cash, and he failed a sobriety test given to him at the scene.
In the courtroom today, “Irsay admitted to a judge he was under the influence of the painkillers oxycodone and hydrocodone when he was arrested on March 16 near his home in the Indianapolis suburb of Carmel,” ESPN reported.
In a statement, Irsay apologized to the community and to Colts fans and vowed to continue taking steps to regain his health.
In a letter to Jim Irsay about the disciplinary action, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell explained “I have stated on numerous occasions that owners, management personnel and coaches must be held to a higher standard than players. We discussed this during our meeting and you expressed your support for that view, volunteering that owners should be held to the highest standard.”
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