OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay pleaded not guilty on Thursday afternoon to a misdemeanor charge of criminal property damage of less than $1,000 after he was arrested Wednesday night by police.
Gay, 23, was released Thursday afternoon from a detention center in Johnson County, Kansas.
Gay's agents, Max Lepstler and Ryan Rubin, said in a statement that Gay was on his way to visit his son when he had an argument with the child's mother, who called the police.
A police report estimated property damage totaling $225 for damage to a vacuum cleaner, cellphone screen protector, humidifier, and a wall and door frame.
The mother of Gay's 3-month-old son has requested a civil protection order, meaning gay is not allowed to have contact with either of them until the case is heard by a civil judge.
Class B non-person abuse "constitutes a domestic violence offense", according to court records. He will return to court on March 2.
Gaye was not in practice on Thursday and people available to speak with reporters deferred all questions about his status to coach Andy Reid for Sunday's AFC Divisional playoff game against the Buffalo Bills, which will resume until Friday. Don't talk to the media.
"I'm going to leave it to Andy. I'm sure he'll address it," said Chief Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. "But if it happened in a game and it was an injury, we would just operate that way. But we'll see what happens."
Gay, The Chiefs' second-round draft pick in 2020, started 11 games this season and secured a Chiefs' wild-card round playoff win against the Pittsburgh Steelers last weekend. He has two interceptions and 0.5 sacks.
Earlier this season, Gaye spoke out about his struggle with mental health, saying that he was "going through some things, man," but he wanted to be an example to other NFL players who were open and honest. They keep such issues bottled up. about them.
"All I can say about Willie is that I love working with him," Spagnuolo said. "He's been awesome. I guess you know he's having a baby; I talk to him a lot about it. I hope it works out for the best of everyone."