RYAN LEAF

“If you think I'm a loser, that I'm a bust, that's fine, but you don't know me.”

AKA“THE BIGGEST BUST

IN NFL HISTORY”

BACKROUND

Born May 15, 1976

Attended Washington State University.

In college he was very successful at QB, and was a Heisman Trophy finalist.

Drafted 2nd overall in the 1998 draft

He grew up with a

brother, Brady, who

played football for the

Oregon Ducks.He played for the San Diego

Chargers, Dallas Cowboys,

Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and

Seattle Seahawks.

Lead his high school Charles M. Russell High School in Great Falls, Montana to the 1992 Montana state title,

Is considered one

of the biggest

busts in NFL

historyHe married Nicole Lucia, who was a cheerleader for the chargers, but later got divorced

Leafs first crime was in May 2009, Leaf was indicted on burglary and controlled-substance charges in Texas

In the NFL he only threw 14 touchdowns and threw 36 interceptions.

His career was short and interrupted by poor play, bad behavior, and injuries

CRIMINAL ACTIVITY

It was in 2009, when Ryan Leaf started his crime spree chain. He was very addicted to drugs such as painkillers and others.

Leafs crimes mostly related to drug procession, burglaries, and theft. With that being said it was very easy to have evidence of him committing the crimes he did, and in all of his crime cases, he pleaded guilty in court.

The first crimes he committed had no major penalties, mainly just probation, however his most recent crime earned him a seven year sentence on June,19, 2012 in custody of the Montana Department of Corrections, his sentence later got reduced to 5 years, and in the end was released on December, 3, 2014, after only serving 2 and ½ years.

CRIMES, EVIDENCE, AND SENTENCES.

CRIME DATE VICTIMS PUNSIHMENTBurglary and controlled-substance charges in Texas.

May-June,17,2009 No VictimsIdentified

He posted a $45,000 bond in Washington state for the criminal charges in Texas, and that was it

Guilty in Amarillo, Texas to seven counts of obtaining a controlled substance by fraud and one count of delivery of a simulated controlled substance, all felonies.

April, 2010 No VictimsIdentified

10 years of probation, and 20,000 dollar

fine.Burglary, theft and drug charges.

March,30,2012 and

April,3,2012

No VictimsIdentified

Guilty plead, bail set at 126,000 dollars, and Leaf was sentenced to seven years in custody of the Montana Department of Corrections

CULTURAL REFERENCES There are many cultural references about Ryan Leaf. One being

that “The Simpsons” made fun of him in one episode.

He is also referred to a lot in the sports world, his name has become synonymous with awful, so anytime there is a player who has talent but turns out to be awful, they compare that player to Ryan Leaf

He has had movies and books written about him, however, even with his criminal life being mentioned, they are mainly only about his football career. For example, the film “LEAF”, and the book “596 Switch”.

SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY OF DEVIANCE

I think that the behavioral theory best explains why Ryan Leaf was deviant. I feel like the minor crimes he did resulted from experiencing day to day experiences. For example, whence got addicted to drugs, he had to have adopted that habit through his social environment. Someone had to have influenced him to try drugs, which ultimately got him addicted. With drugs being a habit, and him getting cut by an NFL team, he had no money and had to find away to get money and to use his drugs. To support himself, he had to steal, rob, or do whatever he could to get money, drugs, or a vehicle. He wasn’t born with the drive or motivation to do that. It was just something he just had to do because he developed it from seeing other people from his “social society” do it as well. After getting arrested his first time, I feel like the experiences he went through forced him to act deviance. He felt like he could act however he wanted and not get caught. I Feel like he considered the crimes he was doing were like a way of life for him. His experiences were the main reason he was acting how he was. Leaf was suppose to turn out to be one of the best quarterbacks the NFL would ever see. Therefore,by no means was he born with the disposition to act deviant and violent. The way he acted was just experienced through expireiences he had went through.