According to the report cited in the ESPN account linked above, Dumervil and his companion, Andy Aguste (his name was apparently misspelled by previous media outlets), were traveling in tandem in separate vehicles -- Aguste out front in a Mercedes, Dumervil trailing in a Range Rover. But they weren't making much time thanks to a traffic jam.
Then, a white Impala driven by Kristine Ramirez merged between the two vehicles. Her action apparently led to horn-blowing and name-calling, after which Aguste stepped out of his vehicle and hiked his shirt to reveal that he was strapped.
Witnesses add that Dumervil did likewise, although he didn't seem to say anything to Ramirez and was otherwise considerably less aggressive than was Aguste.
Police were summoned shortly thereafter, and when they arrived, Dumervil and Aguste were still in gridlock. The report says Dumervil, who was ordered out of his car and handcuffed, initially denied that he had a gun in his car, but one was soon found in his glove compartment. A weapon was also located on the floor of Aguste's Mercedes.
Did Dumervil foolishly succumb to peer pressure in this incident? Or is there more to the story? Can't say for certain yet. But the information is definitely interesting in light of the previous reactions from the press and social media on view below.
Original post, 6:34 a.m. July 16: Broncos fans hate to read about favorite players in the police blotter -- so reports that defensive standout Elvis Dumervil is facing an aggravated-assault-with-a-firearm beef qualifies as a gut shot.
But at least one local blogger thinks the story's overblown and turns more on Dumervil's skin color than his actions.
Thus far, info about the incident is sketchy in the extreme. According to CBS4, Dumervil (who attended high school in Miami) and another man, Andy August, got into an argument over a parking spot, after which the two-time Pro Bowler flashed a firearm. Whether he was the first to do so is an open question, though: A Miami detective tells CBS4 that two weapons were involved.
Dumervil, who was released on a $7,500 bond, quickly secured some high-profile legal assistance by way of lawyer Harvey Steinberg, the man who recently helped ex-Bronco Perrish Cox skate on sexual assault allegations made against him by a woman he impregnated. (Last month, the woman filed a civil suit against Cox and current Bronco Demaryius Thomas.)
Steinberg wasted no time releasing the following statement to ESPN's Adam Schefter: "No charges have been filed. No aggravated assault or assault took place. And it is likely that once the full investigation is complete, no charges will be filed against Mr. Dumervil."
After the arrest, the Twitter Nation sarcasm squad stepped up with tweets like this one...
Elvis Dumervil arrested on felony assault charges. Make sure you reset your 'days without an NFL player getting arrested' counters back to 0
— Evil Mike Tomlin (@EvilMikeTomlin) July 15, 2012
...and this one....
Elvis Dumervil arrested on felony assault charge. "This would have never happened if the Bronco's hadn't traded Tebow." - Skip Bayless
— Peyton's Head (@PeytonsHead) July 15, 2012
But the Denver Post's Lindsay Jones added some context:
That Dumervil was arrested on only agg assault charge is an indication that he has a permit for the firearm. Still waiting to see report.
— Lindsay Jones (@PostBroncos) July 15, 2012
And Peter Burns of Fox Sports Radio thinks Steinberg will make the problem go away soon:
Harvey Steinberg is Elvis Dumervil's lawyer. So unless they got him on videotape wearing his own jersey holding 2 Uzi's he'll walk. #Broncos
— Peter Burns (@PeterBurnsRadio) July 15, 2012
Still, the most interesting take thus far may be from Colin D. of South Stands Denver, who posted an item headlined "The arrest of Elvis Dumervil is starting to seem like a black thing." He writes, "Elvis Dumervil is a 20-something black man who drives nice cars and apparently does own a firearm. It's presumably registered and legal, too. The charges against him do not include any relating to unregistered weapons, therefore he must have his ducks in a row."
Colin adds his supposition that "some drama queen trumped up some shit and the cops had to arrest Doom because he was black and because he had a gun. The cops must have felt pretty sheepish about the whole thing. His bond was $7,500. That's $750 in bail money. That's nothing. And the charges are nothing. Move along, Broncos fans. This story is a dud."
Could be -- and if so, that's good news for the Broncos. After all, the defense has been a liability for years, and losing Dumervil for a significant portion of time would definitely put a crimp in Peyton Manning's plans to make the Indianapolis Colts regret opting for Andrew Luck over him. But it's early yet when it comes to this story. Anything could happen, no matter who Dumervil's hired to represent him.
Here's a larger version of Dumervil's awfully pleasant-looking mug shot.
More from our Sports archive: "Perrish Cox lawsuit: Victim got date-rape drugs before non-consensual sex with ex-Bronco?"
