I just got off the phone with Ken Jackson, the Chief Magistrate of Jasper County, Georgia.  And he confirmed that Bengals linebacker Odell Thurman has a hearing set for late Friday morning that will address the fracas that occurred in Monticello early Sunday morning, with the alleged face-kicking and gun-pulling and what have you.

Sooooo… uh, anybody in the mainstream media want to cover this?  I've heard whisperings that ESPN's Len Pasquarelli can't move forward with the story until the hearing actually happens, but since I'm not a journalist (hello, obviously), I don't know how this whole thing works.  I also contacted Mark Curnutte, the Bengals beat reporter for the Cincinnati Enquirer, but I've yet to hear back from him.

Oh, and the kind people at Pro Football Talk have confirmed the report, as well.  Nice work, guys.  (And to think, I spent all night working on that retraction, only to be RIGHT ALL ALONG.)

UPDATE: More from WLWT (via FanHaus), which reports that police have little evidence, making it a "he said, she said" situation. The hearing will determine if charges are filed.

SECOND UPDATE: The .pdf file of the complaint is available HERE. Basically it says: different people have filed complaints against Odell and Willie Thurman for aggravated assault, criminal trespass, and pointing a gun at someone; no warrant has been issued; and the probable cause hearing is Friday at 11:00.

It's not too often you can read sports news here at With Leather before major media outlets, but a handsome anonymous tipster has reported to me that Odell Thurman, the Bengals' embattled linebacker, has once again run afoul of the law.

According to the tipster, Thurman attended a house party in his hometown of Monticello, Georgia Saturday night.  At around 3 a.m. on Sunday morning, he was grinding on another partygoer's girlfriend, which upset the partygoer in question.  Said partygoer asked Thurman to stop, then returned his attention to a game of pool.  The rest of the story, according to the email I received:

Big mistake. Thurman ran up to the guy, pushed him down, and kicked the shit out of his face knocking the guy out. He then left, and moments later came back with his entourage carrying guns. Some of the people there were able to calm him down, and get him to leave for good.

The Monticello Police Department couldn't provide me with any details, and I got voicemail when I called the county courthouse. But you can expect to see charges filed against Thurman by the end of the day, and Len Pasquarelli will probably have the full story sometime later this afternoon.  You know, if this is all true.

UPDATE: I just got off the phone with the host of the party.  Although he was upstairs when the fight began, he corroborated the story above.  And to be fair to Thurman, it appears that he returned with guns and friends with guns only after people at the party pulled guns on him.

SECOND UPDATE: A tipster sent along the picture below, which is supposedly of the victim's cut lip, courtesy Odell's foot.  I've also received word that Thurman tried to buy his victim's silence.  And just for fun: it was on Friday that Thurman got sentenced to six days in rehab with two years probation for his DUI conviction.

With Leather won't be spreading much holiday cheer over the next two weeks. I'm just too busy; there are simply too many people that need to be called assholes.

However, in light of the most recent Bengal arrest — Odell Thurman's Deltha O'Neal's DUI — hunky reader Brian has made me aware that one lone Bengals fan manages to not only sum up the Bengals off-field activities of the last year, but to put this grinch in the mood for some holiday cheer… And by "holiday cheer" I mean "hot buttered rum." Or "hot chocolate and peppermint Schnapps." Or "a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20 with a candy cane." Or "drinking bleach and crying on the bathroom floor."

Ah, the holidays. Enjoy.

Bengals linebacker Odell Thurman, already in the midst of a four-game suspension for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy, went ahead and got himself another year of vacation by getting a DUI last night while partying with other upstanding teammates like Chris Henry, who was seen vomiting out the car window after Thurman was pulled over. 

This is the kind of thing where as a blogger, you really need to be on your game when the story breaks, because you want to get a post up fast before other people tell your jokes. Me, I just can't do it any more. Like, Chris Henry got arrested FOUR times this past offseason, how can I make fun of him for booting out a car window? Hell, I threw up last night. I was in Atlantic City, and I started drinking during the 1 o'clock games, then kept going through the 4 o'clock games, then kept it up during the Raconteurs concert, then I really hit my stride at the casino tables. Anyway, after 14 hours of drinking, I went to bed thinking everything was dandy, then I woke up to pee in the middle of the night, only to find that what I really needed to do was eject the contents of my stomach. I don't do that pansy vomiting, either; when I boot it's a gale-force stream that comes out with an anger. I puke so hard that my mouth alone isn't an effective outlet — it comes out my nose. Nothing like having stomach acid and hunks of half-digested fried calamari in your nasal passage, let me tell you.

So maybe I don't feel all that good today, but at least I kicked ass in blackjack — I turned a small initial investment into this month's rent. And by rent I mean whiskey.