Ray Rice indicted on charge of assaulting fiancée

Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice was indicted on Thursday by a grand jury on a charge of aggravated assault.

Rice is accused of knocking his fiancee Janay Palmer unconscious while at an Atlantic City casino in February, The Associated Press reports. Palmer's charge of simple assault was dismissed.

Rice was originally charged with simple assault, but the grand jury indicted him for a third-degree aggravated assault because he attempted "to cause significant bodily injury, and/or purposely or knowing causing such injury and/or recklessly causing such injury under extreme indifference to the value of human life," according to the formal complaint obtained by CBS Sports.

An aggravated assault charge carries a three-to five-year sentence if found guilty.

The Ravens backed Rice in a statement saying that "We know there is more to Ray Rice than this one incident."

The running back's lawyer, Michael Diamondstein, spoke with the Press of Atlantic City and said that the charges need to be dropped as the couple is doing fine and are in counseling together.

He noted that neither of the two wish to continue with the case and that no one should judge Rice until the full facts of the case come out.

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