Browns DE Lonnie Phelps Arrested and Waived after DUI Charge

Photo via Cleveland Browns

Browns DE Lonnie Phelps was charged with driving under the influence after crashing an SUV into a Key West restaurant Wednesday night, police said. The crash happened at Red Shoe Island Bistro. Phelps reportedly refused to cooperate with police after going into custody. While no one was injured, the appraised value of the damage to the building was around 300k. Officers at the scene claimed Phelps ultimately agreed to voluntarily do the sobriety tests … but became aggressive after they said he complained about how they were administered. He was then placed in custody and put in the back of a squad car.

The ride back was not much better for Phelps, officers stated that he complained the entire ride back. “Phelps talked about how thirsty he was, how he did not know what I was going to do to him because females are the worst, asked me not to kill him, asked me how long it takes to bail out, how long I was the detective and informed me I was Russian.” one officer stated in the report. Once at the station, cops say Phelps was even worse. According to the report, he refused to take a breathalyzer and at one point he even urinated on himself while sitting on a chair in the station. Phelps was eventually booked into jail and is due for a court hearing within the next month. No more details have been released, as of yet.

Phelps, 23, played his college ball at the University of Miami (Ohio) and eventually transferred to Kansas University where he would emerge as a star, racking up 11.5 sacks in 13 games. He then signed with Cleveland as an undrafted free agent in May of 2023, and spent last season on the practice squad. The Browns later signed him to a reserve/future contract in January for the 2024 season.