WARNING: Video contains disturbing content. Viewer discretion is STRONGLY advised
Ray Rice was released on Monday by the Baltimore Ravens and suspended indefinitely by the NFL after the release of a video showing him viciously punching his fiancée.
The video, released by TMZ, showed Rice knocking out his then-fiancee Janay Palmer with a single punch.
The Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said he met with team executives, including owner Steve Bisciotti, after seeing the video and they made the decision to release Rice.
“It’s something we saw for the first time today, all of us,” Harbaugh said. “It changed things, of course. It made things a little bit different.”
Following the announcement from the Ravens, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello tweeted that commissioner Roger Goodell has banned Rice indefinitely “based on new video evidence that became available today.”
The grainy video posted by TMZ Sports shows Palmer and Rice in an elevator in an Atlantic City casino, in February, apparently arguing before Rice knocks Palmer off her feet and into a railing.
A separate video showed Rice dragging an apparently unconscious Palmer from the elevator, but Monday was the first time footage of the events inside the elevator had been made public.
The couple is now married.
WATCH: As Global National’s Mike Drolet reports, the NFL knew about the assault, which happened back in February, but did little about it until the video was shared online.
Rice was suspended by the NFL for two games for assaulting Palmer, in addition to being arrested following the attack. The assault charges facing Rice could be removed from his record following the successful completion of a pretrial intervention program.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell had reportedly not seen the new video evidence and a statement from a spokesperson for the NFL said: “We requested from law enforcement any and all information about the incident, including the video from inside the elevator. That video was not made available to us. And no one in our office has seen it until today.”
READ MORE: Social media reacts to Ray Rice video, Ravens contract termination
Goodell faced an onslaught of criticism for Rice’s two-game suspension. On Aug. 29 he instituted a new domestic abuse policy for the National Football League that would see a first-time offender of domestic abuse get a six-game suspension and a second offense could lead to a lifetime ban.
He also sent a memo to owners around the league admitting he “didn’t get it right” when it came to the Rice case, saying “domestic violence and sexual assault are wrong. They are illegal. They are never acceptable and have no place in the NFL under any circumstances.”
Canadian Football League commissioner Mark Cohon on Monday informed teams around the league they will back the NFL’s suspension of Rice, making him ineligible to play for a CFL team.
WATCH: Was the NFL too lenient with Ray Rice?
In late August, Cleveland Browns receiver Josh Gordon was handed a year-long suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy after he tested positive for marijuana, leading to criticism that the NFL hands out tougher punishments for the use of non-performance-enhancing drugs than for incidents of domestic violence.
The six-year veteran running back would have been eligible to play following the Raven’s Thursday night game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
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