SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — Former Washington State University quarterback and Super Bowl XXVI Most Valuable Player Mark Rypien pleaded not guilty at his first court appearance Monday.
Rypien is charged with fourth degree assault-domestic violence. After entering his plea, he was released on his own recognizance, according to court documents.
His next court appearance is scheduled for July 31 at 9 a.m.
A spokesman for the Spokane Police Department said Rypien was arrested Sunday afternoon at Garland and Maple Street near Washington Trust Bank.
A third party called police at 5:40 p.m.
Rypien was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence and assault, police said.
He was booked at 6:28 p.m. at the Spokane County Jail.
KREM 2 reached out to Rypien's wife, who declined to comment on the incident.
Instead, the family released a statement to KREM:
In response to Mark being arrested for domestic violence, we want you to know that he did not commit any crime. As a family we are deeply concerned about the situation. Occurrences like this one are often chaotic scenes which are not conducive to revealing full clarity about what actually transpires.
In Washington State, officers are mandated by law to make an arrest in a possible domestic violence case even where there is very little proof that a crime occurred. We will continue to cooperate with authorities to ensure that the truth of Mark’s innocence comes out. We both respect law enforcement and we appreciate the officers’ efforts to protect Danielle yesterday. We’re grateful for their professionalism in treating Mark with respect during a challenging situation. At the same time, we are confident that a complete investigation will result in the dismissal of all charges.
As you may have learned from our public sharing last year, Mark suffers from what we suspect is CTE and that does leave us with some challenging situations to navigate with the assistance of a team of fantastic professionals. This, however, was not one such situation and we are confident that in the coming weeks, clarity about this unfortunate situation will be provided.
Washington state law mandates that police make an arrest when responding to a domestic violence call if they have probable cause to believe that a domestic assault occurred.
Rypien went to Shadle Park High School before attending WSU. He was selected in the 1986 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins.
He won a Super Bowl with Redkins in 1988 before going on to win another Super Bowl and the MVP title in 1992.