Ohio State Football: Storm Klein Domestic Violence Arrest Details Are Disturbing

Over the weekend, Ohio State linebacker Storm Klein was suddenly dismissed from the program. It came out later that his dismissal stemmed from an arrest on charges of domestic violence and assault.

On Monday, some details of the alleged incident were released. To call them unacceptable would be a start, but only a start. Per the Columbus Dispatch:

The incident that resulted in Storm Klein’s dismissal from the Ohio State football team was an altercation with the mother of their child that allegedly included him grabbing and hitting her head on the front door of his apartment, according to information in a police report obtained by the Dispatch.

The alleged victim, whose name was redacted, stated that Klein “violently and purposely grabbed” her by the forearms and slammed her into the front door, causing an abrasion and swelling to the left side of her forehead and scrapes on both of her forearms.

Now, there is no "good" domestic violence, nothing that merely requires a brief explanation to justify or excuse it away. If you believe otherwise, you have deeper problems than merely reading a sports blog will ever fix. As Urban Meyer said in a statement per the Dispatch, the nature of the charges "violate the core values of the Ohio State Football Program." They should violate yours as a person as well.

But let's take a look at the potential excuses anyway, direct from Klein's attorney—as in, the person paid to defend him. The mother of his child shows up unannounced and demands to discuss (see: yell about, probably) their relationship. That's a totally stressful situation. Klein's attorney says his client forced the woman out of the apartment and locked the door, and somehow in the process, she got a pronounced welt on her forehead.

That's not good enough. And if that's what Klein's defense is admitting straight off the bat, it should be enough to make Klein's dismissal from the program permanent, regardless of what happens with the charges themselves.

Klein is 6'2" and over 240 pounds. His ex-girlfriend is, presumably, nowhere near as large or strong as Klein. Resorting to forcible physical contact with her in any situation other than an emergency of self-defense is a gross misuse of his power. 

Pushing someone around doesn't make you a real man. Children do that. Babies know how to push other babies to get what they want before they know how to go to the bathroom by themselves. No, physical violence doesn't have a damn thing to do with being a man. Real strength and real manhood come from responsibility and maturity.

We don't want to see Klein's life ruined for this incident. He's not evil. But he allegedly did something—even by his lawyer's free admission—that has no place in Ohio State's program or any other program. Let's hope he accepts his consequence, gets his act together from here on out and learns a little bit about being a real man in the process.