Saturday, September 13, 2008

Police report indicates Titans' Young was suicidal

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Titans called police for help searching for Vince Young because his therapist told coach Jeff Fisher the quarterback mentioned suicide several times before driving away from his home with a gun.

Both Fisher and Young have said what happened Monday night was overblown by the media. But the supplemental report filed Tuesday by Nashville police showed that Fisher was worried what his quarterback might be doing after the call from Young's therapist.

"I asked him, 'What made her worry about him?' " Lt. Andrea Swisher wrote. "He stated, 'His mood, his emotions, he wants to quit, and he mentioned suicide several times.' He went on to state that he left the house with a gun."

The Titans declined to comment on details of the report. On Tuesday, the team issued a statement saying police had been called over concern for Young but those concerns were unfounded.

"Last night, we received a call from people that are closest to Vince informing us that he had left his house in a state of mind that had them concerned; and that he was unreachable, having left his cell phone at the house," it said. "Not having all the facts available to us and approaching the matter prudently, we contacted Metro Police to make them aware of the situation and asked for their assistance in locating Vince. He was located at a friend's house, where we made contact with him. He then came to the practice facility where it was determined that those initial concerns by his friends and family were unfounded and he returned home without incident."

ESPN obtained a copy of the report on Friday.

The Titans' head of security notified police around 7:30 p.m. that he had a player "going off," and Fisher was in his truck when he saw Nashville police writing a report on a separate incident.

Young's manager, Mike Mu, told police he had tried to follow Young when the quarterback left his home. But Mu said he couldn't keep up with Young on Interstate 65 despite driving 90 mph.

Fisher connected police with Young's therapist, Sheila Peters, a clinical psychologist who had met with Young earlier Monday. It was then that Young used the word suicide in conversations with her.

During the search for Young, Peters arranged for an evaluation by employees from a psychiatric hospital in Nashville. Then Fisher heard from Young's agent that the quarterback was safe and at an apartment with a female friend.

The agent, Major Adams, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Young had been watching football and eating chicken wings with a male friend during the four hours people were searching for the quarterback.

Police arranged for crisis negotiators and SWAT officers to be on hand. They searched Young for weapons when he arrived at the Titans' headquarters around 11:30 p.m. They only found an unloaded handgun in the glovebox of his Mercedes.

Tennessee law allows an individual to possess an unloaded weapon provided there is no ammunition with it in the car.

"He was allowed to talk to his therapist and then he was released," the police report stated.




Spain Marks Anniverssary Of Antonio Puerta’s Death
Police: Jags’ Taylor yelled at officers during search