Vikings’ Adrian Peterson Booked on Charge of Child Abuse

Adrian Peterson, the star Minnesota Vikings running back charged with child abuse, surrendered to Montgomery County, Tex., authorities early Saturday morning and was freed on $15,000 bond. Peterson flew to Houston on Friday night after practicing with the Vikings earlier in the day. A warrant had been issued for Peterson’s arrest Friday afternoon, one day after he was true-billed indicted, essentially by a Montgomery County grand jury on a single count of injuring a child. The team listed him as inactive for Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots at Minneapolis. It was not directly clear whether Peterson planned to return for the game or remain in the Houston area, where he lives in the off-season. In the N.F.L., inactive players often stand on the sidelines. A Vikings spokesman did not return a phone call. Ray Rice was arraigned on domestic violence charges in May. He was fired by the Baltimore Ravens this week. In a statement, Lt. Brady Fitzgerald of the Montgomery County sheriff’s office confirmed Peterson turned himself in and was released shortly after booking. Peterson, in a gray T-shirt, smiled for his mug shot.A spokeswoman for Rusty Hardin, Peterson’s lawyer, said Hardin had no further comment on the arrest or Peterson’s surrender. On Friday, a Vikings spokesman said the team was gathering information and referred all questions to Hardin.

The charges stemmed from Peterson’s disciplining his 4-year-old son in May in Spring, Tex., with a small tree branch, commonly called a switch.CBS Houston, citing law enforcement sources and police reports, said the beating caused cuts and bruises in several areas of the boy’s body, including his back, ankles and legs. Peterson, 29, told the police that the punishment was a “whupping” administered after the boy pushed another of Peterson’s children. At a news conference Saturday, Phil Grant, Montgomery County’s first assistant district attorney, said that while parents were entitled to discipline their children, the grand jury decided what Peterson did “was not reasonable and did not reflect community standards of what was reasonable discipline.” Peterson could face up to two years in jail and a $10,000 fine if convicted, Grant said. The boy’s name has not been released. In an interview with ESPN.com last month, Peterson acknowledged having one child with his wife, Ashley Adrian Jr., age 3 as well as four others who did not live with him. The couple married in July. Another boy, whom Peterson never met, was killed last October in Sioux Falls, S.D., after being assaulted. A man the mother was dating faces murder charges. Peterson’s arrest comes at a time when the N.F.L. is already reeling from criticism for its handling of a domestic violence case involving Ray Rice, the former Baltimore Ravens running back.