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Patterson denied
his role in Ruffin's death at the sentencing hearing, the
newspaper reported."This is probably where people expect a
guilty person to turn around and ask for forgiveness," Patterson
said, according to the newspaper. "I'm not guilty. All I did was
try to help."
Police have said they were called to a Sioux Falls apartment in
October 2013 because Patterson reported that he had found Ruffin
slumped over and unresponsive. Doctors determined that Ruffin's
injuries were consistent with abuse. The boy died two days
later.Peterson, the National Football League's most valuable
player in 2012, told reporters he had learned about Ruffin only
two months before the incident and had been preparing to provide
financial assistance to his son and the child's mother.The
running back, who did not attend the trial, met Ruffin for the
first time at a hospital shortly before his death.
In an unrelated case, Peterson in 2014 pleaded no contest to a
misdemeanor assault charge for spanking his four-year-old son
with a switch. He was ordered to pay a $4,000 fine and perform
community service.
(Reporting by Lisa Maria Garza in Dallas; Editing by Dan
Whitcomb and Sandra Maler)
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