Jameson Williams wasn’t active for the Detroit Lions’ gigantic 52-14 win over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. The 12th overall pick of the 2022 NFL Draft also won’t be in the lineup for this week’s crucial matchup against the Green Bay Packers as he serves the final bit of a two-game suspension due to violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing drug policy.
But now the Lions receiver is generating headlines for different reasons, not relating to his play or his current suspension.
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Police questioning Detroit Lions’ Jameson Williams after gun discovery
According to WXYZ of Detroit, police are investigating Detroit Lions wideout Jameson Williams, who was nearly arrested earlier this month.
Specifically, investigators want to know how and why the 23-year-old was released from custody after officers initially had planned to bring him to jail following a traffic stop.
Williams was reportedly out after midnight on Oct. 8 when police pulled over a vehicle driven by his brother. Williams’ sibling quickly informed the officer that there were three guns located in the car, including one sitting on the back seat. The gun was registered to Jameson’s brother, who has a concealed pistol license.
Yet, there was another gun, resting under Williams’ seat, which was registered to Jameson, who does not have a concealed pistol license. This was an issue in the eyes of the law officer. Thus, the police informed the Lions receiver that he’d be taken into custody over having a concealed weapon.
The arresting officer did not recognize Williams as a player of the Lions, but Jameson kept reminding police who he was, and his ties to Detroit’s NFL team.
After several minutes had gone by, Williams brought it up again, “Bro, I play for the Lions!”
However, the officer then informed the football player that his status would not impact the arrest procedure. WIlliams’ brother attempted to take the blame, saying that the other gun actually belonged to him, before Jameson eventually relented and admitted possession.
Later, he tried to explain his reasoning, “I got the gun for protection. Do you guys know where I live at? Detroit!”
Williams was then handcuffed and placed in a squad car. However, he was never actually taken to jail. What happened next involved a supervisor being called to the scene, which the department insists is “not unusual” for a high-profile stop. Minutes later, a sergeant arrived, who was a Lions fan and recognized the team’s wide receiver.
Body cam footage from the arrest showed the sergeant’s cell phone wallpaper was a picture of the Lions logo. He then spent the next 30 minutes making multiple phone calls, trying to determine whether an arrest was truly necessary. He even told the other officers on the scene that he was “so mad at you two.”
Yet, the sergeant was still proceeding as if Williams would be taken into custody until everything changed moments later when a lieutenant demanded that the Lions receiver be released from the car. He was quickly uncuffed and given his gun back, before being allowed to go about his day. No police report was written.
However, now Detroit police has launched an internal affairs investigation into the matter, wondering how Williams wasn’t taken into custody.
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Lions release statement on Williams
While the investigation is ongoing, the Lions have since released a statement addressing the unusual situation involving their young receiver.
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