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Buffalo Bills pass rusher Von Miller will be available to play against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, despite his arrest last week in Dallas for allegedly assaulting a pregnant woman. Bills general manager Brandon Beane spoke with reporters Wednesday, confirming Miller is back with the team in Orchard Park, N.Y. Beane said the team has been in “constant” communication with the league and they do not currently anticipate Miller bring placed on the commissioner’s exempt list, which would deem him inactive. Beane said Miller will participate in practice and is expected to play on Sunday when the Bills (6-6) travel to play the Kansas City Chiefs (8-4).
Beane stressed on Wednesday that he wants the legal process to play out and not rush to making any judgments, and said that the Bills are following the NFL’s lead. He called the allegations serious while adding they seemed “out of character” for a person he’s come to know over the past year and a half since signing Miller in free agency. Said Beane: “No one wants their name associated with any accusation like that, so that’s a natural disappointment. I’m sure he’s disappointed. But things happen sometimes, and again, we have to remember people, we have to give them their fair due process. That can happen to anyone in this room. And I would hope we would all wait and let that play out before we rush to judgment.”
According to a police affidavit which officers wrote, the alleged assault occurred on Nov. 29 in which Miller twice put his hands on the neck of the woman, pulled out a chunk of her hair and threw her onto a couch. The woman was treated for minor injuries, including bruising on her neck, police said. The woman and Miller have been in a relationship for seven years and have children together, police wrote in an affidavit supporting the arrest warrant. Miller turned himself in a day after the arrest warrant was issued.
Miller faces a charge of third-degree felony assault of a pregnant woman, which is punishable by 2 to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. He is free after posting a $5,000 bond.
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