Vikings CB Cook charged with felony domestic assault

Minnesota Vikings cornerback Chris Cook was charged Tuesday with trying to strangle his girlfriend, leaving her with a bloody nose and lip in an alleged attack that jeopardizes his status with the team.
Cook, 24, was charged with felony domestic assault by strangulation, which carries a penalty of up to three years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Cook was arrested early Saturday and released from custody Tuesday on $40,000 bail. He is barred from contact with the alleged victim and cannot leave Minnesota, which would prevent him from traveling with the Vikings to Sunday's game at Carolina.
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» NFL Network scheduleCook has a court appearance set for Wednesday afternoon.
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said the league is reviewing the matter. Such charges often bring suspensions, per the NFL's personal-conduct policy.
Cook issued a public apology to the Vikings and his fans Tuesday afternoon on Twitter.
"My apologies to the fans! Vikings ownership, coaching staff, my teammates and friends and family!!" he wrote.
Cook also sent out the following tweet: "There's always two sides to a story!!"
According to the complaint, Cook became upset early Saturday when he found out his girlfriend of 10 months had spoken to an ex-boyfriend. The woman told police that Cook threw her on the bed at his Eden Prairie home, got on top of her and grabbed her neck with an open hand, constricting her ability to breathe.
The woman freed herself by grabbing Cook's hair, the complaint said. Cook then struck her in the ear, sending her crashing into a wall. As the woman ran to the living room, he grabbed her neck again and squeezed it.
Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said at a news conference that Cook answered the door to the house, and officers found the woman with a bloody nose and upper lip. She had marks on her neck and hemorrhaging in her eye, Freeman said, consistent with victims of strangulation. State guidelines call for a sentence of a year and a day, he said.
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Authorities haven't disclosed the girlfriend's identity,according to the Star Tribune, and Freeman said the alleged victim has been cooperating with the investigation.
Cook's attorney, David Valentini, told reporters his client was "of course" remorseful and "not happy" about the situation.
Cook is "upset he's sitting (in jail)," Valentini said Tuesday afternoon. "He's upset he missed the game (Sunday against the Green Bay Packers). He's upset with the whole incident." Freeman noted that case but said, "As far as we're concerned, there's no record."
Cook's most recent arrest is his second in the last eight months. He was found not guilty of brandishing a firearm earlier this year after allegedly pulling a gun on a neighbor in his home state of Virginia.
Vikings coach Leslie Frazier had a talk with Cook during the offseason to reiterate the importance of staying out of trouble off the field, and the second-year pro emerged as perhaps the most reliable cornerback on the field during the team's 1-5 start.