INDIANAPOLIS, IN - NOVEMBER 10: Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay reacts to applause during Dwight Freeney"u2019s induction in the team"u2019s Ring of Honor during halftime of the game against the Miami Dolphins at Lucas Oil Stadium on November 10, 2019 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Bobby Ellis/Getty Images)
In an interview released earlier this week, Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay blamed his March 2014 arrest for driving while intoxicated on his status as a white billionaire. Irsay tested positive for several prescription drugs in a subsequent toxicology report but claimed to be sober at the time of his arrest.
“I am prejudiced against because I’m a rich, white billionaire,” Irsay said during the interview with HBO Sports. “If I’m just the average guy down the block, they’re not pulling me in, of course not.”
When Irsay was arrested in Carmel, an Indianapolis suburb, police officers reportedly found prescription drugs in his vehicle. He also tested positive for oxycodone and two other medications, which treat pain and anxiety. He pled guilty to driving while intoxicated in September 2014. When asked how he thought his accusations of prejudice would be received, Irsay doubled down on his comments.
“I don’t care what it sounds like,” Irsay said. “It’s the truth. … I could give a damn what people think how anything sounds or sounds like. The truth is the truth, and I know the truth.”
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Irsay has spoken previously about his battle with addiction, which has plagued him for much of his adult life. But when asked about the arrest during the interview, he claimed that he failed the sobriety test because he was not coordinated following hip surgery.
“The arrest was wrong,” he said. “I had just had hip surgery and had been in the car for 45 minutes. And what — they asked me to walk the line? Are you kidding me? I can barely walk at all.”
The Carmel Police Department has claimed that Irsay failed a number of sobriety tests, from walking in a straight line to reciting the alphabet backward. Carmel Police Lt. D.J. Schoeff also released a statement to the Indianapolis Star in which he stood by his department’s conduct.
“We have a very professional agency consisting of officers that strive to protect our community with integrity and professionalism,” Schoeff wrote.
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