He’s sorry.
That’s what Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch said in his first public comments since being arrested and charged for driving under the influence of alcohol in his hometown of Oakland last week
“I want to apologize to my family, the Seattle Seahawks, the NFL and the 12th Man for the negative attention resulting from my recent actions,” Lynch said in a prepared statement released by the team on Friday. “This is not the type of community leader I have been over the last two years or the one I’m striving to become. I want to assure everyone that I will work to be better and look forward to a very exciting, and very successful season with the Seattle Seahawks.”
Lynch, 26, was arrested by the California Highway Patrol early Saturday morning when an officer observed him driving erratically northbound on Interstate 880 in Oakland. He was weaving in and out of lanes in a white Ford van, and nearly collided with two cars.
After failing a preliminary sobriety test, Lynch was taken into custody and transported to the Alameda County Sheriff department’s north county jail in Oakland. Lynch submitted to a Breathalyzer test, which revealed his blood-alcohol content was over the state’s legal limit of 0.08.
The Alameda County District Attorney’s office filed charges against Lynch for driving under the influence of alcohol on Wednesday. Lynch has an arraignment date of Aug. 14, but he does not have to be present for the court date.
Lynch’s attorney, Ivan Golde, said Lynch’s blood-alcohol content was measured at 0.08 during the preliminary alcohol screening test. Golde said the officer at the scene administered a Breathalyzer test.
Golde said Lynch was retested at the jail about an hour later. He took another Breathalyzer test there, and his blood-alcohol content was measured at 0.10.
Golde said he will argue the fact that Lynch’s blood-alcohol content rose after the arrest shows that it was not above the legal limit while he was driving.
eric.williams@thenewstribune.com 253-597-8437 blog.thenewstribune.com/seahawks @eric_d_williams
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