District attorney wants thorough investigation into LeSean McCoy incident

ByABC News
February 11, 2016, 9:10 AM

— -- No decision on a possible arrest warrant for Buffalo Bills running back LeSean McCoy is expected Thursday, a high-ranking Philadelphia police official told ESPN's Mark Schwarz.

McCoy is part of an investigation into an alleged nightclub assault against off-duty police officers that occurred Sunday. The official told ESPN that the district attorney's office wanted to be thorough before determining possible charges.

Philadelphia station WPVI reported Wednesday that investigators recommended McCoy be one of the individuals charged with aggravated assault. A Philadelphia police official told Schwarz that McCoy was an active participant in the incident.

A lawyer for McCoy told Outside The Lines' John Barr on Tuesday that his client will turn himself in if he is charged.

On Thursday, Jack McMahon told ESPN he had withdrawn as McCoy's attorney. McMahon said he informed the district attorney's office that McCoy would instead be represented by Philadelphia attorney Larry Krasner, who has not responded to requests for comment.

A source close to the investigation told ESPN that the off-duty police officers will face no internal disciplinary charges as a result of the alleged incident.

Philadelphia's district attorney's office said Tuesday that it has received the case from police and is reviewing it for potential charges.

A statement released Monday by Philadelphia police said that two off-duty officers, both 40-year-old black men and members of the city's police department, were injured in a nightclub fight with four black men, ages 26 through 30, around 2:45 a.m. Sunday. CSNPhilly.com reported that a third off-duty officer was also involved in the fight.

Police did not identify suspects, but a man familiar with the investigation confirmed to Schwarz and The Associated Press that McCoy, who played six seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles, is under investigation. The man spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to publicly discuss the case.

The argument began over ownership of a bottle of champagne, according to the police statement. Police said "pushing and shoving" over the bottle led to one of the off-duty officers being knocked to the ground, and while he was on the ground, he was "punched, kicked and stomped about his body and head multiple times by all four suspects."

Another off-duty officer joined with club security to help break up the fight, and "all parties were ejected from the club," police said.

The officer knocked to the ground was Roland Butler, according to CSNPhilly.com. He went to a hospital, where he was treated for a cut to his right eye, a broken nose, broken ribs and a sprained thumb. The officer who broke up the fight was also admitted to a hospital, where he received eight stitches over his left eye and was receiving treatment Monday for a possible skull fracture, police said in their statement. A police source told Schwarz that one of the officers also suffered an orbital fracture.

Both officers who had been hospitalized have been released.

A third officer, who was not listed in the incident report, has filed a police report, ESPN has learned. A police source told Schwarz that this could mean the DA is trying to bring one more count, if charges are filed.

John McNesby, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5, a police union, told Philly.com that the officers "look like they got the brunt of it."

McNesby spoke to Barr on Monday to detail the extent of physical damage to the officers: "This was an all-out beatdown with broken bones and serious injuries. These officers are hurting. They're in pain. These are serious injuries."

McNesby did not get into details about who instigated the physical confrontation, though he defended the officers.