The suspension stems from an arrest for codeine back in July of 2008. The original charges were dropped shortly before a scheduled trial only to be refiled a short time later with plenty of more evidence. In June, Bedard reported the following:
Among those alleged extraneous offenses: That Jolly "bought, sold, funded, transported and aided in the buying, selling, funding and transportation of illegal narcotics including cocaine and marijuana" in Harris County from 2006 through May 2008.
The prosecutor also intends to introduce evidence that during the same period, Jolly was seen smoking marijuana and consuming liquid codeine; that Jolly "showed deception" during a polygraph test this month when asked about his use of alcohol, marijuana and street narcotics while on bond since December 15; and that he has attended nightclubs and bars and consumed alcohol since December, in violation of his bond.
So Jolly's offenses went from a fairly standard arrest for codeine to allegedly a major player in the Houston drug game.
It's interesting that one of the substances at play here is codeine because it's the same substance for which JaMarcus Russell was arrested. That arrest helped uncover the underground popularity of "Purple Drank" which is a codeine-based drink apparently popular among some athletes.
For the NFL to hand down such a drastic suspension absent a conviction, you can probably assume they're aware of more information regarding Jolly's innocence (or lack thereof) than the rest of us.
