Since video leaked of Ray Rice cold-cocking his then-fiancee and now-wife Janay Rice, a lot has happened. Rice's employer, the Baltimore Ravens, terminated his contract. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell suspended him indefinitely, and the brutal domestic violence has sparked a nationwide conversation.
Anita Marks, a sideline reporter and radio host in New York, knew the Rices before the fame -- or infamy. Marks co-hosted a radio show with Rice himself during her time as a sports reporter in Baltimore. Marks joined a roundtable discussion Friday on HuffPost Live to talk about the emerging narrative of domestic violence in lieu of Rice's transgressions. She told host Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani:
I know Ray Rice and I know Janay extremely well because I spent four years in Baltimore, and I covered the Ravens and I actually hosted a sports talk radio show with Ray. These are two young people who started dating at Rutgers when they went to college together. She moved to Baltimore when he was drafted by the Ravens. All she knows is his world. She does not have her own life. It's all about Ray Rice. Infidelity was a part of their relationship. She couldn't deal with it, and the relationship got toxic. And it got ugly, and it got violent, and it was caught on tape. Now, do I think Ray Rice is the guy that goes around and beats up on women? No, I don't. Is it wrong for him to put his hands on her? Absolutely.
Marks also said she believes that Rice deserves a second chance, however many years down the road his suspension is lifted. Other members of the panel did not agree.
"I think it's not really productive to get into the ins and outs of their relationship. We're not part of the relationship, not matter what you know about them personally or professionally. We weren't there," said Franchesca Ramsey, an actress and comedian. "Nice people can do really awful things, and that's exactly what happened here."
Catch the rest of the clip above, and watch the full HuffPost Live conversation here.
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