Randy Moss in trouble

Moss responds to off-field issue
Link|Comments (0) Posted by Mike Reiss, Globe Staff January 16, 2008 11:37 AM
FOXBOROUGH – Patriots WR Randy Moss addressed reporters in the locker room at Gillette Stadium today, touching on an off-the-field issue swirling around him. The issue was first reported by 580 WBDO in Florida.

“First of all, you all probably heard about these allegations. All I want to say is that they are false allegations," Moss told a large gathering of reporters.

"It’s something I’ve been battling for the last couple days, threats of going public if I didn’t pay X amount of dollars. Before people rush quick to judgment, I think you need to find out the facts about really what is really going on. This young lady, by no means, is hurt. I didn’t hurt her.

“I think that, what I heard, I really don’t know the whole story, of what is being said. All I know is supposedly I … battery … whatever it may be, that I physically hurt a woman. Well, I want to make something clear. In my whole entire life of living, 30 years, I have never put my hand on one woman, physically or in an angry manner. This battery they’re talking about, I guess from a legal standpoint, there has to be something said. Like I said, I don't really know all the facts. I don’t know what’s going on as far as everything that has been alleged.

“All I know is that it’s a friend of mine, a young lady, it was an accident where she hurt herself, to where they called me, called my attorneys, trying to get X amount of dollars out of me, and if ‘we don’t get X amount of dollars’ they were going to go to the press before this game.

“Basically what I’m saying, I’m actually going to hold off for questions. I just really wanted to get out there to the people that I am aware of what is going on. I don’t really want people to rush quick to judgment [without] knowing the facts. My teammates don’t have anything to do with this. They don’t know anything. I think it was just brought to their attention. If you could all just leave them out of it, because they don’t know anything that’s going on. I don’t really know the whole situation of what’s going on, just bits and pieces. It definitely was not my intentions of doing anything like this, with this battery with the woman. That’s really not my makeup, that’s not me, I’ve never been in that situation where I’ve had to put my hands on any woman, any lady.

“Like I said, man, before you rush quick to judgment, find out all the facts before you start criticizing me or judging me. That’s all I have to say. Thanks.”