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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 5:53 am Post subject: Colts owner Jim Irsay arrested for DUI, possession of controlled substance

I suspected he was using again before this incident happened I'm curious where in Carmel he was arrested I live 10 minutes from there.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/17/jim-irsay-arrested-for-dui-possession-of-controlled-substance/

Quote:

Jim Irsay arrested for DUI, possession of controlled substance

Colts owner Jim Irsay has been arrested in Carmel, Indiana on multiple charges.

According to the Indianapolis Star, Irsay faces preliminary charges of “operating while intoxicated and possession of a controlled substance.” Bond has been set at $22,500.

Irsay is the first NFL owner to face criminal charges since Eddie DeBartolo relinquished control of the 49ers when it was learned that he was facing an indictment on federal racketeering charges in 1997. In 1998, DeBartolo pleaded guilty to failure to report a felony in connection with money allegedly paid to former Louisiana governor Edwin Edwards to procure a riverboat gambling license.

The NFL routinely imposes discipline on players and non-players who are convicted of or plead guilty to DUI charges. To have any credibility when punishing non-owners for such offenses, the NFL must be willing to impose discipline on owners, too.

When players are arrested for drunk driving, one of the arguments raised is that they can afford to pay for a ride home. With a net worth of $1.6 billion, Irsay definitely can.

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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 6:04 am Post subject:

We're going to be hearing a lot more stories about this I bet

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/17/report-irsays-behavior-was-alarming-around-colts-organization/

Quote:

Report: Irsay’s behavior was alarming around Colts organization

Jim Irsay’s early-morning arrest for operating while intoxicated and possession of a controlled substance may not have come as a shock within the Colts’ facility.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, some people with connections to the Colts franchise had grown concerned about the owner’s behavior.

“There are people around the Colts organization who have been suspicious about some of his behavior,” Schefter said Monday morning on SportsCenter.

No details were given about Irsay’s suspicious behavior. Irsay has acknowledged his struggles with addiction but has claimed that he stopped drinking 15 years ago. Irsay will be subject to discipline from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 6:12 am Post subject:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/17/jim-irsay-charged-with-four-felony-counts-of-possession/

Quote:

Jim Irsay charged with four felony counts of possession

Colts owner Jim Irsay remains in jail after this morning’s arrest, and the charges continue to mount.

According to Kristine Guerra of the Indianapolis Star, Irsay was charged with four felony counts of possession of a controlled substance, after police found several prescription drugs in pill bottles in Irsay’s car.

Police said they found Schedule IV prescription drugs in his car. Schedule IV drugs are on the lower end of the substance abuse spectrum, according to the DEA’s guidelines, and includes sleep medications and Xanax among others.

Irsay admitted in 2002 an addiction to prescription painkillers, and some within the organization have worried about his recent behavior.

dont_be_a_wuss
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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 8:29 am Post subject:

List of Schedule 4 substances, if anyone is interested: LINK

jonnybravo
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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 11:02 am Post subject:

dont_be_a_wuss wrote:

List of Schedule 4 substances, if anyone is interested: LINK

They may be deemed low risk for abuse but I can say without a doubt that several of them are among the most heavily abused of prescription medications.

jodeke
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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 11:09 am Post subject:

Basketball Fan wrote:

We're going to be hearing a lot more stories about this I bet

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/17/report-irsays-behavior-was-alarming-around-colts-organization/

Quote:

How do you discipline your boss?
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Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind.

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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 12:49 pm Post subject:

jodeke wrote:

Basketball Fan wrote:

We're going to be hearing a lot more stories about this I bet

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/17/report-irsays-behavior-was-alarming-around-colts-organization/

Quote:

How do you discipline your boss?

Ask Eddie DeBartolo.

24KaratGold
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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 3:23 pm Post subject:

Wonder what he had _________________ Double rings > Double rainbow

Conker
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Posted: Mon Mar 17, 2014 9:29 pm Post subject:

Pfffft.... That ain't nothing. The drug charges dropped with PTD completion with DUI conviction. That's what the State wants. _________________ (❍ᴥ❍ʋ) ʕʘᴥʘʔ (⌐ ͡■ ͜ʖ ͡■) (┛◉Д◉)┛( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) ༼;´༎ຶ ۝ ༎ຶ༽

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Posted: Tue Mar 18, 2014 4:35 pm Post subject:

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/report--jim-irsay-s-daughter--carlie--to-take-over-colts--day-to-day-operations-223505475.html

Quote:

Report: Jim Irsay's daughter, Carlie, to take over Colts' day-to-day operations

Carlie Irsay-Gordon (middle) will take control of the Colts in her father's absence. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)
Indianapolis Star columnist Bob Kravitz wrote a heartfelt plea for Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay to get help when he was arrested for driving under the influence, and Kravitz tweeted on Tuesday that Irsay will cede day-to-day control of football operations to his daughter, Carlie Irsay-Gordon, while the owner is in rehab getting help.

While Jim is in rehab, one of his daughters, Carlie, will fill Jim's role. Will sign off on trades, acquisitions, etc.
— Bob Kravitz (@bkravitz) March 18, 2014
So who exactly is Carlie Irsay-Gordon? She's the 33-year-old daughter of Jim and Meg Irsay — one of three from the couple (who divorced last fall) whom Jim has said previously will have equal shares of team ownership when he dies.

The most famous sister might actually be Casey Irsay, who is married to racecar driver A.J. Foyt IV.

But Irsay-Gordon, who has attended NFL owners meetings for nearly a decade, will be in charge while Irsay gets the help he needs. It will be interesting to see if she speaks at all at next week's owners' meetings in Orlando. Jim Irsay is typically very visible at the events, almost always stopping to speak to media members.

According to the bio on the team website, Irsay-Gordon interned with the Colts in the football and marketing departments while pursuing her undergraduate degree, later graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in religious studies with a minor in geoscience from Skidmore College in 2005.

She and her husband moved from Chicago to Indianapolis with their three children.

There has been speculation for the past few years that Jim Irsay might dial back his involvement in the team on a daily basis, even with as much as he loves the Colts. Perhaps Irsay-Gordon had been preparing for this day. Clearly, the team has faith in her abilities or she would not be overseeing this role.

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Posted: Wed Mar 19, 2014 8:04 am Post subject:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/19/steve-tisch-believes-goodell-will-make-a-statement-by-disciplining-irsay/#comments

Quote:

Steve Tisch believes Goodell will “make a statement” in disciplining Irsay

Plenty of NFL owners will be asked about the Jim Irsay situation when they gather in Orlando for the annual league meetings next week.

One got a head start on the process by talking to a guy on the street with a camera, from TMZ.

Giants co-owner Steve Tisch said he believes Commissioner Roger Goodell will take action in this situation.

“I feel he’s gonna do something, and I think he’s gonna make a statement,” Tisch told the unidentified reporter who tried to interrupt the surprisingly talkative Tisch several times during the 90-second-or-so session. “Again, you know, Jim’s got some felony charges against him.” (Four, to be exact.)

Tisch made it clear that he’s merely commenting on the league’s rules and precedents, not attacking or judging Irsay.

“Jim’s a great guy, and I think a lot of people are wishing him all the best,” Tisch said. “Certainly me included. And I think he’s getting the help that he needs, and it’s gonna make his life a lot better.”

To the extent a double standard is suspected regarding players and owners, Tisch doesn’t seem to believe two sets of rules will apply.

“An owner is just as vulnerable to disciplinary actions as a player,” Tisch said. “By putting ownership as well as coaches and players in the bylaws, it’s gotta be applied equally.”

It’s still unclear how to apply the rules equally between players and owners, especially when the owner has a net worth of $1.6 billion.

For a first-offense DUI, players routinely lose two game checks. Under that standard, maybe Irsay should lose two weeks of his own paycheck from the league, via the team’s share of TV and other revenue that gets carved up and divided among the 32 franchises.

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Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 8:52 am Post subject:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/20/dungy-feels-for-irsay-but-says-goodell-has-to-discipline-him/

Quote:

Dungy feels for Irsay, but says Goodell has to discipline him

Former Colts coach Tony Dungy felt terrible when he learned that his old boss, Jim Irsay, was arrested for driving while intoxicated and drug possession.

“I was heartbroken,” Dungy said on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas. “I’ve known Jim Irsay for 13 years now. He’s a special guy to me — a person who is very self-sacrificing and would do anything for you. He did some unbelievable things for me, for my family, for the city of Indianapolis, and I just want him to do well. He’s struggling with some prescription painkillers and other medications — he made a big mistake. I was sad to see that but I’m hoping that this will be the silver lining in the cloud — he will reach out and get some help and grow from this.”

But while Dungy has sympathy for Irsay, he said there’s no doubt in his mind that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will hand down discipline, considering that Goodell has disciplined players, coaches and team executives who were arrested.

“I think they have to,” he said. “If the commissioner doesn’t step in with something I don’t think it will be good, so, yeah, something has to be done and hopefully everyone benefits from it.”

Dungy is right. We can simultaneously say that we hope Irsay gets the help he needs, and say that it’s totally unacceptable to get behind the wheel while intoxicated. Irsay deserves support while he gets that help, and he deserves the discipline he will surely get from Goodell.

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Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 9:16 am Post subject:

Basketball Fan wrote:

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/report--jim-irsay-s-daughter--carlie--to-take-over-colts--day-to-day-operations-223505475.html

Quote:

I wonder if she wears a baseball hat with her hair sticking out the back. Might set a couple posters on a good rant.

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Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 9:43 am Post subject:

No Carly is rather low key probably more likeable than her sister Casey who's married to AJ Foyt's grandson.

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Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 7:45 am Post subject:

http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/kravitz/2014/03/21/kravitz-nfl-require-drug-testing-colts-owner-jim-irsay/6689971/

Quote:

Kravitz: NFL should require drug testing for Colts owner Jim Irsay

Whatever Roger Goodell does to Jim Irsay – a fine and suspension seem like the minimum punitive actions at this point – the NFL commissioner must also protect the franchise and the franchise's fans.

And that means requiring Irsay to undergo random drug testing as a prerequisite to maintaining control of the Indianapolis Colts.

The bottom line is this: If Irsay remains in the throes of drug addiction, it's not fair to the franchise or its fans to have him in charge of the club, which is, after all, a billion dollar asset.

While it's understood that a football team is a private business first and foremost (as Baltimore fans found out in 1983), it's also a quasi-public enterprise. Every dollar Irsay has made over the years has come directly or indirectly from the fans who support his team or who helped him build Lucas Oil Stadium.

As taxpayers, as fans, we have the right to know that the person who is running the show is in his right mind – not some of the time, as has been the case during Irsay's tenure, but all the time.

13_SPCOLTS12.186573
FILE - Colts owner Jim Irsay listens as Ryan Grigson talks with the media Jan. 11, 2012.(Photo: Matt Detrich / The Star)
I am not a fan of drug testing for street drugs unless it involves people in safety-sensitive positions. But Irsay is in complete charge of a public trust, and those whose dollars have helped enrich him have the right to know that he's handling their team, and their dollars, with a clear mind.

When a player, such as Pat McAfee, has an alcohol-related indiscretion, he is forced to go through an entire after-care program, which includes a year or two of drug and alcohol testing. Irsay should not only be forced to submit to drug testing for a period of time, but for perpetuity, for as long as he wants to run the Indianapolis Colts.

This isn't done for punitive reasons. This is done to protect the franchise and the fans of the franchise.

A fine? Absolutely. If the late Bud Adams got $250,000 for flipping the bird at fans, what's Irsay's mistake worth? Half a million? A million? More? Executives should be held to a higher standard than the players. The bottom line is, he endangered his own life and the lives of others by getting behind the wheel while impaired. That is inexcusable.

A suspension? Absolutely. He should not be allowed to attend a couple of Colts games next year. Again, he put others at risk. A suspension would hurt a whole lot more than a fine; the Colts are Irsay's second love, right after his family, and being away from his franchise will be one of the toughest things he's ever done. But it's got to be done. (And yes, the Players Union is going to be watching Goodell very closely here, just to make sure he comes down as hard on one of his employers as he does on his players).

But the best thing Goodell can do – and he can do this – is require random drug testing.

If Irsay doesn't want to comply, or can't comply, he can give the team over to his daughter Carlie, who is handling his business while he's at a rehabilitation facility.

We saw how poorly the Colts were run when Irsay's father, Bob, was dealing with his alcoholic demons. While Jim has been a terrific owner by most accounts, what's to say that his addled condition wouldn't put the franchise in some kind of peril? What if he's not in his right mind and suddenly, foolishly decides to fire his front office or his coaching staff after an egregious loss?

Irsay isn't a do-nothing owner who sits in his office and listens to Eagles' CDs all day. He's very active in every conversation regarding the football team. True, he's been very good at hiring top football people and letting them take care of the football business, but he's much more than a simple rubber stamp.

He's the one who hired Bill Polian.

He's the one who hired Tony Dungy.

He's the one who jettisoned Peyton Manning and chose to draft Andrew Luck.

He is not Jerry Jones and has no aspirations of becoming Jerry Jones, but he's the final decision-maker.

You think about it, it's remarkable how well Irsay has run this franchise even while in and out of his addictive phases. I mentioned Polian, Dungy, Luck for Manning. The record under Irsay speaks for itself. Even in his worst times, like in the early 2000's and the last few years, he's still had the right instincts. Which tells me he's a very good football owner, regardless of his demons.

Just imagine him clean and sober.

Irsay has a responsibility to himself, his friends, his loved ones and Colts fans to get it right this time. He should know by now how lucky he is, gaining ownership of a football team and enjoying riches beyond most of our comprehension as a winner of the genetic lottery.

He's also fortunate he has the resources and the access to the best rehab treatment in the world. There are scores of troubled souls out there who have the same problems, but lack the wherewithal to get the help they need.

He is blessed, even if I'm quite sure it doesn't feel that way at this particular moment.

Goodell, though, has to do more than pummel him with a fine and a suspension. He has to think of the franchise and the franchise's fans. He has to hold Irsay accountable to the scores of people who have a right to know he's operating in a sober manner

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Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 8:40 am Post subject:

How are you gonna own an NFL team and not take a cab. I have even hired 2 cabs before when drinking, so one could drive my car home, and then get a ride back from his buddy. Way cheaper than a DUI.

jonnybravo
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Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 10:24 am Post subject:

dont_be_a_wuss wrote:

How are you gonna own an NFL team and not take a cab. I have even hired 2 cabs before when drinking, so one could drive my car home, and then get a ride back from his buddy. Way cheaper than a DUI.

Owning an NFL team puts you in the "take a limo everywhere" crowd. In fact, he could go out and buy a fleet of limos just for (bleep) and giggles.

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Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 12:33 pm Post subject:

jonnybravo wrote:

dont_be_a_wuss wrote:

How are you gonna own an NFL team and not take a cab. I have even hired 2 cabs before when drinking, so one could drive my car home, and then get a ride back from his buddy. Way cheaper than a DUI.

Owning an NFL team puts you in the "take a limo everywhere" crowd. In fact, he could go out and buy a fleet of limos just for (bleep) and giggles.

Perhaps ashamed to admit he was drunk. Sobriety has been part of his image, or at least the fight to stay sober.

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Posted: Mon Mar 24, 2014 1:17 pm Post subject:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/03/24/goodell-on-irsay-well-wait-for-the-facts-but-hes-subject-to-discipline/

Quote:

Goodell on Irsay: We’ll wait for the facts, but he’s subject to discipline

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was noncommittal today when asked about Colts owner Jim Irsay’s potential discipline after his arrest for driving while intoxicated and felony drug possession.

“We obviously will want to understand the facts before we take any steps as it relates to any potential discipline,” Goodell said. “But obviously any policies, or any laws that are broken, whether you’re commissioner, owner, player or coach, those are subject to discipline.”

Goodell said he believes Irsay, who had previously disclosed that he has struggled with an addiction to painkillers, took the right step by going directly from jail to a treatment center. He also said Irsay’s daughters are capable of running the team in his absence.

“He is seeking help and he has done that voluntarily. That’s, I think, the most important step, at least initially,” Goodell said.

A future step will almost certainly include some type of suspension that forces Irsay to take more time away from the Colts. But Goodell isn’t ready to commit to that just yet.

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Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2014 6:02 am Post subject:

Carrying 29K in cash eh?

http://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2014/03/26/excerpts-jim-irsay-arrest-reports/6937659/

Quote:

Excerpts from the Carmel Police Department case reports on the March 16 traffic stop and arrest of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay:

• I observed the vehicle come to a complete stop on W. Main Street for no apparent reason. ... As I was approaching the vehicle it began to slowly move east bound and came to another complete stop in the lane of travel for no apparent reason. ... I asked him if he knew why I had pulled him over. Irsay advised that he was trying to find his house and gets confused with what road it is located on.

• I asked Irsay to exit the vehicle and he did. We walked to the back of his vehicle at which point I began to explain the instructions for the horizontal gaze nystagmus test. During the instruction phase, Irsay was not able to stand with his feet together. Irsay continuously fell off balance to the point that Officer Thomas had to remain very close to Irsay to ensure he did not fall. ... Concerned for Irsay's safety I determined that he was not able to complete the 9 step walk and turn, as he could barely stand up without Officer Thomas and I supporting him.

• Irsay was offered a blood draw to which he refused. Irsay was reminded of Indiana implied consent and confirmed that he refused to voluntarily allow a blood draw. I then contacted headquarters and requested the on call prosecutor call my cell phone. ... I advised him of the information and sent him a completed affidavit for probable cause requesting a warrant to draw Irsay's blood. I received the warrant after it had been signed by Judge Hughes.

• I was contacted by Sergeant Dunlap who advised that during the vehicle inventory prior to it being towed, he and Officer Thomas had recovered numerous prescription medication bottles containing pills. ... Officer Thomas advised that during the vehicle inventory he had also recovered $29,029 in cash.

• Inside the vehicle was a metal briefcase containing a great deal of items. Among those items was a large amount of loose US currency. ... In the briefcase were ... pill bottles with various color and kinds of pills. Located on the floorboard of the passenger seat were two bags. Inside the bags were ... pill bottles with an assortment of pills.

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Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2014 10:24 am Post subject:

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/10718294/jim-irsay-father-son

Quote:

Jim Irsay -- like father, like son?
Colts' owner was sensitive to his father's substance-abuse issues.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Even in the weeks before his collapse, he was not him. Gaunt, erratic and stooped over like a broken old man, Jim Irsay was on something, no doubt. But he was not his father.

About a month ago, Irsay popped into Daddy Jack's, a fine-dining joint in north Indianapolis that boasts of excellent food and generous drinks, and Irsay lit up the back room. It was rare to see him out at night like that. Normally, in the years since he sought treatment for an addiction to prescription painkillers in 2002, Jim would duck into Daddy Jack's just to order something eclectic off the menu, eat and be on his way. But on this particular night, he grabbed his guitar, played the blues, and belted out a rendition of "(Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay."

He tipped his waitresses handsomely, more than $100 each trip. He always made a point to be generous, perhaps because his father had not.

"It was a fun night," says Jim Thompson, owner of Daddy Jack's, who notes that Irsay had visited the establishment more lately.

"I knew his father. He used to come in a lot. I never saw him sober. I'd go to shake his hand, and he'd grab my hand and pull me over the table and knock over glasses, and I was like, 'Oh my God.' He was not really that nice of a man, to tell you the truth. Jimmy's a lot nicer than his dad. I was expecting the worst, and getting to know Jimmy kind of changed my mind on the family. And they have been very good for this community."

Nasty stories abound about the late Robert Irsay, the liquor he consumed, the people he infuriated, the hearts he broke in 1984 when he whisked the Colts out of Baltimore in a caravan of Mayflower trucks in the dead of the night and relocated the team to Indianapolis. But Jim Irsay was damned if he'd be that guy. He learned from his father's mistakes. He spent a lifetime vowing to be kind and rational, sharp and football-savvy. He'd be one of the NFL's best owners instead of the worst.

And to a great extent, he's succeeded. Since Jim took 100 percent control of the franchise in 1997, the Colts have piled up nine division championships, 13 playoff bids and a Super Bowl title. Yet here he was, walking down the same self-destructive path Bob Irsay walked, seemingly on the way to following addictions to the same sad end.

Was Jim really that different?

In the late hours of March 16, the man who tried so hard to be different from his father was pulled over by Carmel, Ind., police, who found a cocktail of prescription pills and a driver who slurred his speech and had difficulty standing. Jim Irsay was booked on preliminary charges of misdemeanor driving while intoxicated and four felony counts of possession of a controlled substance. Formal charges have not been filed, and last week prosecutors postponed an initial court appearance for Irsay "unless or until" formal charges are filed against him.

He is receiving inpatient treatment at an out-of-state facility. Years ago, his father sought help, too, according to a former associate who requested anonymity. The elder Irsay couldn't beat his addiction and died in 1997 after battling a host of health issues, including congestive heart failure.

Old football players who watched Jim grow up around the Colts' organization call "Jimmy" a good man who was extremely sensitive to his father's substance-abuse issues. So how did the son get here?

"Jim's nothing like his old man," says Bruce Laird, a Pro Bowl safety for the Baltimore Colts in the 1970s, who knew father and son well. "He's respectful. He cares about Indianapolis, cares about the National Football League. I think he wanted to do right by his franchise.

"I hadn't seen him [lately], of course, so I was shocked somewhat by his appearance and being that thin. I had no idea the devil got back to him."

Jim Irsay, left, has been a much different kind of NFL owner than his father, Robert Irsay.
People who knew Bob Irsay well offer two pictures. One is of a hard-driven, self-made millionaire who could charm and B.S. his way into your heart; the other is of a short-tempered, ruthless, cantankerous and meddlesome alcoholic who had no business running a professional football team. The redeeming qualities were definitely there, pre-booze.

Most anyone who can describe a coherent Irsay is now gone, but in the suburbs of Chicago there is a man pushing 90 who has documentation. His pictures of Irsay, wavy-haired and stocky, look as if they could've come from a happy 1950s TV sitcom. There's Irsay in his office, next to a sign that says, THINK, and there he is working the room from a couch covered in plastic wrap.

Gene Bednarz, a Marine and World War II veteran, once trusted Irsay so much that Bednarz left his job at the Acord Ventilating Company to join Irsay's new venture, the Robert Irsay Company. It should be noted that Acord was owned by Bob's father, Charles, and that the family accused Bob of trying to drive the old man out of business.

But there was a time, many years ago, when a young Bob Irsay could be sweet and engaging. He actually used to have a distaste for liquor, Bednarz says, to the extent that during business meals he'd fake drinking, and then, when nobody was paying attention, dump his drinks in a nearby potted plant.

It was a different time, though. It was the era of three-martini lunches, of 100 percent deductible entertainment on expense accounts, and if Irsay was going to be a good salesman, he had to knock a few back and schmooze.

And for a while, most everyone around him had a very good time. He had lavish Christmas parties with gifts for everyone, plus dancing with a full orchestra. He'd rent private buses to shuttle guests from breakfast at the country club to Cubs games at Wrigley Field. They'd take soda bottles and fill them with bourbon or scotch for the game.

Much of this was part of doing business. Irsay knew that the generosity would lead to favorable gossip in the industry. But he could be both truly generous and stingy, friendly and ruthless.

Bednarz saw both sides. One morning as he stood up from the breakfast table, Bednarz fell on the floor with back spasms and couldn't stand up. His wife, who was pregnant at the time, called the office and said he wouldn't be able to come to work. A half-hour later, Irsay was at the front door. He walked in, picked Bednarz up off the floor, and carried him to the tub for a hot bath.

"He would do things like that," Bednarz says, "just show up out of nowhere, just blow you away with his care.

"And other times he was just brutal. He'd have a relationship with a contractor, and when that contractor was in a lot of trouble and needed money, that was when Bob would not pay him. He'd say, 'This guy's going to go under, why should I pay him?' And then the guy would go under. Who knows if he would've paid him if it would've helped the guy? He was brutal in business. But who isn't brutal in business to succeed at times?"

Bednarz eventually left Irsay's company because he couldn't stand his boss's drinking, so he never got to know Irsay's youngest son Jimmy. Bednarz had met Tom, the oldest son, who was mentally disabled and died in 1999, and has sketchy memories of Roberta, who died in a car accident as a teenager in 1971. But aside from watching glimpses of Jim on TV, Bednarz knows nothing about him, nothing about the youngest son of Bob Irsay.

"I saw him [on TV] when they won the Super Bowl a few years ago," Bednarz says. "I didn't see a resemblance there at all."

The football world looks at Jim Irsay and sees an astute football mind, a man who drafted Peyton Manning over Ryan Leaf 16 years ago, won a truckload of games with the future Hall of Famer, then cut Manning loose two seasons ago to make room for Andrew Luck and the future, openly shedding tears during the process.

Irsay is not an empty suit. He played football himself, walking on for a bit at SMU. Front-office types say they don't have to explain a bunch of things to Irsay because he's already done his homework. Former Colts vice chairman Bill Polian, now an ESPN analyst, called their relationship "symbiotic." They could almost finish each other's thoughts.

Irsay has made it a point to know all of his players, too. In 2003, the Colts added an undrafted rookie named Gary Brackett. Midway through Brackett's rookie season, he went home during the bye week to bury his father. Very few people knew why he was gone. He wasn't a star, just a special-teams guy.

Colts owner Jim Irsay must clean up, apologize and reach out to help others before he can help his football franchise, writes Mike Wells. Story

While Carlie Irsay-Gordon might be sitting in for her father, Jim Irsay, while he is in a rehabilitation center, she has been an integral part of the organization for years, writes Mike Wells. Story

Brackett quietly returned to the team the next week, and Irsay found him in the locker room, after the Colts beat the Houston Texans 30-21. "I'm praying for you and your family," Irsay whispered in his ear. "Thanks for all you do for the team."

Brackett eventually wound up being a captain and a starting linebacker on the Colts' 2006 Super Bowl team. In March 2012, new Colts general manager Ryan Grigson called Brackett to tell him he was going to be cut. It wasn't a surprise to Brackett. He'd been battling a shoulder injury and knew his body was breaking down.

Grigson told Brackett that Irsay wanted the linebacker to stop by the owner's office for an exit interview. They talked for 20 or 30 minutes about Brackett's shoulder, his heath, what they'd accomplished together, and Irsay's plans for the Colts' future.

"It was a very emotional meeting," Brackett says. "How often do you get released and speak to the owner for 20, 30 minutes? I think we both were teary-eyed.

"A lot of players are ticked off when they don't get signed back, but I think everybody has great things to say about Irsay and the support he gave us over the years."

Bob Irsay sold heating and air conditioning. He was not an expert on football. His first few years running the Baltimore Colts, he was just the man who signed the checks. He buzzed in from Chicago on weekends for games, lingered in the locker room for 15 or 20 minutes, and didn't know the names of most of his players.

If a guy wasn't in front of his stall, and thus his nameplate, Irsay would simply call the player "Tiger." There were dozens of Tigers on each of those early Irsay teams, and the players laughed and called him Tiger behind his back. One day, the guys decided it would be funny to really mix the owner up, and they switched around their nameplates.

Irsay mistook Howard Stevens, a 5-foot-5 black running back, for Laird, 6 feet tall and white.

None of this mattered much because Irsay had Joe Thomas as his general manager. Thomas did most of the heavy lifting and was part of a package deal in 1972 when Irsay bought the Los Angeles Rams and then promptly swapped teams with Colts owner Carroll Rosenbloom.

Thomas made many controversial moves, including shipping beloved quarterback Johnny Unitas out of town, but by the mid-1970s, the young teams he'd built through the draft were becoming close and successful, and won three straight division titles. But by then, the franchise was rife with turmoil.

Irsay went through seven coaches in 10 years. He fired Howard Schnellenberger after an 0-3 start in 1974 -- it wasn't even October yet -- and replaced him with Thomas. Irsay was impatient and emotional. He would call in plays from the owner's box and belittle players in front of their teammates.

One of Irsay's regular targets was Marty Domres, a quarterback for the Colts from 1972 to '75. In a heated exchange in Atlanta, Irsay coldly told Domres that it would be nice if he could complete passes to his teammates, not the opponents. Domres fired back, and the argument was eventually broken up by a couple of teammates, but not before Domres told his owner, "You don't know if the football is blown up or stuffed."

Irsay went on an epic rant after a bad game in Detroit in 1976 -- an exhibition game. It was so venomous that coach Ted Marchibroda quit, with the season opener looming, and came back only after a team protest.

"Logic didn't have anything to do with the decisions he made," Domres says. "It was more emotional or driven by alcohol in some instances, I assume."

On that seemingly insignificant day in Detroit, the day Bob Irsay chewed out his team after an exhibition loss, his son tried to make amends. He climbed on the first team bus, the one with all the veterans, and apologized for Bob's rant. At least one player noticed that Irsay started to shake and well up with tears.

Jimmy was 17 years old.

Omar Manejwala, an addiction psychiatrist who works with celebrities and wrote the book, "Craving: Why We Can't Seem to Get Enough," says kids who grow up in alcoholic homes often experience more guilt.

"Some of them take on the role of becoming caretaker, where essentially they lose themselves in order to take care of everyone else and establish a sense of normalcy," Manejwala says. "They are forced to take on parent-like roles even though they're children."

The younger Irsay had been a ball boy during training camps, but by the time of that blowup in 1976, he was growing into a man. He loved those players, especially the defensive linemen, who took him under their collective wing.

There are stories about young Jimmy having a good deal of fun with his football friends on road trips once he was old enough to drive, stories of a young man experiencing the world. "I can't tell you the stories," Laird says. "But just safely say that he was like any young man living the dream and getting out there. He wasn't an angel by any stretch of the imagination, but he was just a great guy who hung around and tried to be part of us, and we accepted him as that."

Dallas (Texas) County records show that Irsay was charged with driving while intoxicated in 1979 while at SMU, but was found not guilty by a judge. He became the Colts' general manager at 24, following orders from a dad who'd often change them midstream.

Jim Irsay would joke, later, that his father fired him numerous times. There was a common belief in the Colts' organization that if you needed something to get done, you had to get Bob Irsay before noon, before the cocktails started. Laird tells a story of a player who knew this, so during his contract negotiations, he and his agent kept stalling long into the afternoon. After the third day, Laird says, Irsay relented and said something to the effect of, "Just give him what he wants!"

If Bob was doing business in the afternoon, he was usually surly. And he often wouldn't remember what happened the next day.

"Jim didn't like to talk about his father's shortcomings," says Ken Murray, a longtime football writer for The Baltimore Sun. "There were things like that that he regretted, and he definitely had a different way of approaching the business than Bob did.

"We never saw Jim conduct himself in public that way. Jim never went out on a drunken binge that people would see in public."

Possibly Bob's most well-documented drunken tirade came in January 1984, during an impromptu news conference at Baltimore-Washington International airport. The elder Irsay was shopping the team, and the media knew it. Confronted, Irsay angrily said, "I have no intentions of moving the (bleep) team."

He slurred his words and could barely open a door on his way to the news conference.

Gene Bednarz saw both sides of Bob Irsay.
Gene Bednarz, Bob Irsay's old colleague, suspects that Bob's drinking escalated in the early 1950s, when he was negotiating a big contract with Caterpillar Inc. The folks he was trying to woo then were heavy drinkers, Bednarz says.

Bob Irsay's son apparently drank heavily at one point, too. He used to joke to friends that he'd spilled more alcohol than they'd ever drank. But he didn't want to be his father, and people close to him believe he hasn't had a drink in more than a decade.

He told this to his Twitter followers in October, posting that he hadn't had a drink in 15 years. He tweeted it at 3:39 in the morning, telling his "naysayers" that he was working at the late hour. He also posted, "I do pray for you unhappy, s***-slingers ... who wants to live on a planet with those who don't like themselves ... we want happy, kind people"

Twitter, Irsay's critics say, is a way for the owner to gratify his ego. There's a picture on his page of Irsay in a white-and-blue suit and matching top hat and cane, arms stretched, standing on the 50-yard-line surrounded by his massive guitar collection.

The contentious October tweets came in the days leading up to Peyton Manning's return to Indianapolis for a game between the Broncos and Colts. After Irsay's team won 39-33, the owner gave the Colts a locker-room speech that was captured by NFL Films. Irsay took a dig at Manning, saying that though he has nothing but gratitude for him, "We all know that we want to go and get this." Irsay held up his right hand with the Super Bowl ring, an apparent nod to the fact that Manning won only one Super Bowl.

But Irsay was not himself. Longtime Indianapolis Star columnist Bob Kravitz knew that long before October. It was around the time of Manning's departure that Kravitz wondered if Irsay was back on drugs. Irsay, who has a deep respect for Kravitz's work, started leaving long, rambling voicemails in the middle of the night.

"He said some things privately to me in such a way that I thought, 'Is this guy all there?'" Kravitz says. "It just got more and more bizarre.

"Even when Jim is sober, he's rambling and sometimes relatively incoherent, but it was the way ... he was just very emotional and kind of slurring his words. He would leave 10-, 15-minute long messages on my phone, and I just thought, 'Man, something's not quite right here.'"

The dramatic weight loss made Kravitz even more suspicious. But he couldn't prove anything. Irsay told him that doctors said he had to lose the weight to take the strain off his back and hips. Irsay, a former weightlifter, had hip surgery last year.

Was it the physical or emotional pain that lured him back to drugs? Irsay's wife, Meg, filed for divorce in November. But the couple had been estranged for years. Irsay's decision to part ways with Manning was highly scrutinized. But that's part of the business of being an NFL owner.

"The bottom line is that it's very difficult to beat an opiate addiction," Manejwala says. "People die from these addictions at a high rate, and many who attempt to quit find they cannot despite their very best efforts."

Irsay's struggles with prescription drugs were well-documented in the local media in 2002. The Indianapolis Star reported that a local pharmacy had filled more than 120 prescriptions for Irsay over the course of roughly a year. In a 24-day span, Irsay received 400 OxyContin tablets. Indianapolis' NBC affiliate said that Irsay had several stints in rehab and "at least three overdoses."

According to the Carmel, Ind., police report from March 16, Irsay had "numerous" medications, some without prescription bottles, in his SUV, along with $29,000 in cash. His eyes were red and watery. Standing outside his vehicle, he nearly fell.

Manejwala says research suggests that if a person with a family history of alcoholism is addicted to opiates, has a much higher risk of relapse.

Jim Irsay has long been a searcher for the deeper meaning of life. In 2001, he dropped $2.43 million to purchase Jack Kerouac's original manuscript of "On The Road," a 121-foot scroll of sheets that Kerouac cut and taped together. The book is described as a story of a personal quest for meaning and belonging. Kerouac died in 1969 at the age of 47, bleeding internally from years of alcohol abuse.

One of Irsay's good friends was Hunter S. Thompson, a massively gifted writer who spent much of his life abusing alcohol and drugs; Thompson committed suicide in 2005. Thompson was notorious for sending funny, brilliant and odd faxes to famous people, cc'ing their names. Irsay's was often one of those cc'd.

If it was late and Irsay needed someone to talk to, he'd call Thompson. One crazy night, Irsay was fired up, determined to look for grizzly bears in Alaska, and told Thompson to get ready, because he was flying out to pick him up in his private jet.

"It was into the wee hours, about 5 a.m.," says Thompson's old attorney, George Tobia. "And so it was like, 'Well, we'll go tomorrow,' and it didn't happen. But they were talking seriously about their plans and where they'd go. It was one of those late nights when stuff was going on."

When Thompson died, Irsay wrote a tribute column for his friend on ESPN.com's Page 2.

"The thing about Hunter was that he had such a big heart," Irsay wrote. "That's the thing I loved about him the most. Because really, just like Belushi and Chris Farley, he was just a big-hearted guy, and he was actually a very shy guy, and a very sweet guy. Put away all the bravado and all that stuff, just very brilliant."

"Shy" is actually a word that Bob Leffler, the Colts' former director of sales, uses to describe Jim Irsay's father. Leffler says that Bob Irsay was misunderstood in some ways. He was a businessman suddenly thrust into the spotlight, and he didn't have a clue how to deal with the media or the public.

He recalls a time, in the late 1970s, when Bob Irsay won a Man of the Year Award from a local group in Baltimore.

"He didn't seem like an ogre to me," Leffler says. "Everyone always said to me that he didn't want to win. Bob Irsay wanted to win. You learn from your father."

At the NFL owners meetings last week in Orlando, the league's most powerful people did their best to avoid anyone who wanted to talk about Jim Irsay. His daughter, Carlie Irsay-Gordon, made the trip for her father. For Monday's breakfast, she showed up very early, possibly to avoid reporters, something her father rarely did.

Arizona Cardinals coach Bruce Arians was one of the few people who'd say anything about Jim Irsay. He recalled a time when he was the Colts' offensive coordinator in January 2013 and fell ill before a playoff game at Baltimore and had to go to the hospital. Irsay immediately arranged for a plane to pick up his wife, and the plane stayed in Baltimore until Arians was ready to go home.

Arians will never forget that. And he says he's praying for Irsay.

People in Indianapolis are praying, too. Kravitz estimates that probably 90 percent of the city is genuinely concerned, while a small percent is unsympathetic toward a billionaire who has everything but control over his life.

Jim Irsay is armed with all the lessons. It is possibly the most important thing he inherited from his father.

"I think Jim will recover," says Murray, the retired Baltimore reporter. "He's a very strong person. I think Jim will grow from this, too.

"But maybe humans cannot escape what is inherently bred into them."

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Posted: Sun Apr 06, 2014 7:49 am Post subject:

I heard about this rumor regards to a chick Irsay set up at a townhouse who OD'd on heroin on Friday I didn't think the Star would publish the story.

http://www.indystar.com/story/news/2014/04/06/colts-owner-jim-irsays-troubles-go-beyond-march-arrest/7368789/

Quote:

When Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay emerges from rehab, he will face questions from an NFL commissioner known for his hard line on the behavior of players off the field.

But will Roger Goodell apply those same standards to an NFL owner — essentially one of his bosses?

Some players are closely watching to see whether that's the case. So, too, are sports law and ethics experts who say language in the NFL's Personal Conduct Policy could open Irsay up to scrutiny that goes beyond his March 16 arrest in Carmel on preliminary charges of impaired driving and possession of controlled substances.

The league's policy, which explicitly states that the rules apply to owners, says employees should be held to a "higher standard" than merely avoiding criminal conviction.

A sports law and ethics expert, as well as a source familiar with NFL operations, told The Indianapolis Star that the policy could lead Goodell to also ask about Irsay's relationship and associations outside of the Colts, including with an Indianapolis woman with a drug history of her own — a woman who died of a suspected drug overdose two weeks before Irsay's arrest. Her body was found in a $139,500 townhouse Irsay gave her last August.

"The NFL is often criticized for protecting the 'shield,' and it does," said Mike Gilleran, executive director of the Santa Clara University Institute of Sports Law and Ethics. "How does the league look if it ignores that? It can't, in my view."

The source familiar with NFL operations told The Star the league likely would want to look at anything that could shed further light on Irsay's drug use and associations: How long has he been abusing prescription drugs? Is he using other illegal drugs? Who was he getting the drugs from? Who was he using them with?

Like Irsay, Kimberly Wundrum, 42, had a history of drug problems before she died March 1.

Timeline: Jim Irsay through the years

March 16 arrest: Jim Irsay carrying $29K cash when arrested

Excerpts: Jim Irsay's full arrest report

Wundrum's sister, Rhonda Wundrum, who has worked as Irsay's personal masseuse, said in an email her sister and Irsay were "former friends" but did not elaborate. A former neighbor of Kimberly Wundrum told The Star that Irsay sometimes visited Kimberly Wundrum, and that she once introduced the team owner to him.

"I cannot speak for them, and Kim cannot speak for herself," Rhonda Wundrum said. "My sister was a kind, loving and gentle person who had a long struggle, and her attempts to rise above her struggles were not successful."

Kimberly Wundrum was arrested twice on drug charges in the seven months before her death. She was arrested Aug. 30 in Miami County, Ohio, on charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and felony drug possession. Police found her with 18 "nonprescribed Vicodin ... and 0.6 grams of crushed, nonprescribed Adderall."

On Jan. 4, she was arrested in Boone County on charges of possession of a controlled substance, operating a vehicle while intoxicated with drugs in her system and criminal recklessness after she was stopped driving the wrong way on I-65 and almost hitting a police car.

Her drug-related ties go back years. While she was married to an attorney in Florida, he pleaded guilty in 1997 to federal tax charges and was sentenced to 15 months in prison for failing to report $364,000 in transactions he conducted for a man identified in court documents as a drug dealer. They were divorced in 2003, and he died in 2005 of a drug overdose.

While investigating the scene of Kimberly Wundrum's death, a police report lists evidence gathered at the scene as an "orange plate w/white powder, straw, razor." They also found photographs of Irsay in the home of the former homecoming queen candidate at Brownsburg High School in 1990.

Police and the coroner are awaiting the results of toxicology tests, which are expected later this month, before issuing a final cause in her death.

Irsay's recent arrest was not his first problem with drugs, either.

He acknowledged entering rehab in 2002 for a prescription drug addiction after his name surfaced in a police investigation of a doctor over-prescribing powerful painkillers. And in a 2010 interview with USA TODAY, he openly detailed a long history of recreational drug use — including mushrooms and cocaine — as a younger man.

"Oh, man. I was so balls-to-the-wall," Irsay said. "I could somehow hide that aspect a little, like ducks feeding underwater. Truth is, it was just all-out."

He declared his sobriety Aug. 6, 2002.

After Irsay's recent arrest, Star columnist Bob Kravitz reported that Colts insiders "for years ... have known Irsay was struggling again with drugs."

Long association

Several financial documents reveal a long association between Kimberly Wundrum and Irsay and the Colts.

An entity called the "2009 Blue Trust," which was administered by Colts executives, owned three homes since 2007 that Wundrum listed in public records as her address. She used two of those properties — including an $800,000 home — as the corporate address of her landscaping business in filings with the Indiana secretary of state.

The townhome in Traders Point where Wundrum died was purchased by the Blue Trust in June 2013 for $139,500. Weeks later, the trust transferred ownership of the property to Wundrum at no cost.

When asked about the Blue Trust, Colts Chief Operating Officer Pete Ward responded that it pertains to Irsay's "personal life," and it would be "inappropriate for me to comment."

An email and text message to longtime Irsay spokeswoman Myra Borshoff Cook were not returned.

The trustee for the Blue Trust was Daniel Emerson, vice president and general counsel for the Colts. In one of the transactions, the warranty deed says the tax statement should be sent to the buyer's address: "Indpls. Colts attn. Pete Ward." The document also listed a post office box identical to the one listed on the team's official website.

The property transactions connecting Irsay to Wundrum, on their own, do not appear to be significant, said Gary Roberts, dean emeritus and Gerald L. Bepko professor at the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law in Indianapolis. He added that Irsay likely did not break any laws by using Colts money or staff.

"The team is 100 percent owned by the Irsays," he said. "If the team was publicly traded, or if there were minority partners who might object, that could be different."

At most, Roberts said, the deals "sound to me like the sort of thing federal tax officials might want to look into."

That said, the transactions could raise questions in the public arena, Roberts said.

Central Indiana taxpayers have a large investment in the Colts through financing $620 million of the $720 million Lucas Oil Stadium.

Some analysts have said Irsay, whose net worth is $1.6 billion, according to Forbes, has one of the most lucrative stadium deals in the league. He keeps money from naming rights — $121.5 million for 20 years — advertising and luxury suites, and up to $3.5 million annually in profits from nonfootball events. That's in addition to money from tickets, food, drinks, merchandise and parking on Colts game days.

"It is one thing to subsidize the team so it can win on the field and to keep it in Indianapolis," Roberts said. "It is another thing to subsidize an entity that uses its money to provide a home to the owner's (friend). That could turn public opinion.

"The question is why? Why is he doing it that way?"

Irsay has not been formally charged following his March 16 arrest on preliminary counts of driving while impaired and possession of a controlled substance.

A police report said his speech was slurred and he could barely stand. But he passed a breath alcohol test, prompting an officer on the scene to tell his supervisor he "believed Irsay to be intoxicated on a substance other than alcohol." Police then obtained a court order to take a blood sample for testing.

Police found $29,000 in cash in a briefcase and laundry bag, along with numerous bottles containing prescription medications for which Irsay could not provide proof of a prescription.

Irsay was stopped shortly before midnight just blocks from a $1 million home he purchased in February. Public records show a recently divorced woman and her children moved into the house "on or about March 1."

The Hamilton County prosecutor's office said it will not comment on the case "until or unless" formal charges are filed. Spokesman Andre Miksha said he could not address the delay in filing charges, but legal experts said it is likely due, at least in part, to the time it takes to get test results back from the blood drawn from Irsay after his arrest.

No clear league precedent

Gilleran, the head of the sports law and ethics institute, said Goodell will be wading into uncharted territory in disciplining Irsay. Gilleran was responsible for handing out discipline during his 20-plus years as commissioner of the West Coast Conference and said he always looked first to any precedent that existed.

But a clear precedent to Irsay's situation is lacking.

Goodell hasn't had to discipline an owner for substance abuse or impaired driving. But he has fined at least two owners.

In 2009, Goodell fined Tennessee owner Bud Adams $250,000 for making an obscene gesture at an opposing team's fans.

In 2006, he fined Pittsburgh owner Dan Rooney $25,000 for criticizing officials.

And in 2010 — in a situation that comes closest to Irsay's — Goodell suspended Detroit Lions President Tom Lewand for 30 days and fined him $100,000 after he pleaded guilty to driving while impaired.

An NFL spokesman declined to comment about Irsay's situation, but Goodell has said he will wait for "all the facts to emerge" before deciding what, if any, punishment Irsay might receive.

Goodell has upped the ante in league discipline.

Less than a year after taking the job in 2006, he introduced his Personal Conduct Policy, which gave him vastly expanded power to suspend players and NFL staff.

"It is not enough simply to avoid being found guilty of a crime," the policy says. "Instead, as an employee of the NFL or a member club, you are held to a higher standard."

In 2012, he stunned New Orleans coach Sean Payton by suspending him for an entire season because of the team's "bounty" program, where players earned money for injuring opponents.

The section of the NFL's drug policy that covers "drugs of abuse," which the league distinguishes from performance-enhancing drugs, says violations "may include substantially longer suspensions."

The league suspended at least 12 players last season for more than 40 games because of "substances of abuse." That included Colts receiver LaVon Brazill, who was suspended for the first four games of the season, losing about $125,000 in salary.

George Atallah, assistant executive director of the NFL Players Association, declined comment. But some players are wondering publicly whether Irsay will be treated differently.

Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman, who made the game-winning interception in last season's NFC Championship game, worries there could be a double standard. Writing on mmqb.com, Sherman contrasted the reaction to Irsay to the treatment star Philadelphia receiver DeSean Jackson received recently after being cut — reportedly for "gang ties," according a media report.

"Commit certain crimes in this league and be a certain color, and you get help, not scorn," Sherman wrote. "Nobody suggested the Colts owner had 'ties' to drug trafficking, even though he was caught driving with controlled substances … and $29,000 in cash to do who-knows-what with."

Former Colts defensive tackle Anthony "Booger" McFarland, who has a sports radio show in Tampa, Fla., tweeted that he'd suspend Irsay for a year with "no football contact whatsoever," adding that's the "only way you send a message to the players and the fans!!"

Star reporter Stephanie Wang and Star researcher Cathy Knapp contributed to this story.

Call Star reporter Tim Evans at (317) 444-6204. Call Star reporter Mark Alesia at (317) 444-6311 or email Mark.Alesia [AT] indystar.com. Follow them on Twitter: @starwatchtim and @markalesia.

HOW IRSAY WAS INVOLVED IN A TANGLED REAL ESTATE WEB

From 2007 until her death March 1, Kimberly Wundrum lived in three different homes with ties to the Indianapolis Colts and owner Jim Irsay. Records show the properties all were owned by a private entity called the "2009 Blue Trust," which was administered by Colts officials. A Colts spokesman said the trust's activities pertained to Irsay's "personal life."

• 8315 Codesa Way

June 2013: The Blue Trust purchased the townhouse for $139,500.

August 2013: The trust gave the townhouse to Kimberly Wundrum at no cost.

Kimberly Wundrum was found dead in the townhouse March 2 of a suspected drug overdose.

• 7910 Mill Pond Lane

March 2010: Irsay friend Thomas Moses purchased the house for $575,750.

March 2010: Moses sold the home to the Blue Trust for $575,750.

Between 2009 and 2013, Kimberly Wundrum listed the house as her home address in court documents and as the corporate headquarters for a landscaping business in reports she filed with the Indiana Secretary of State.

February 2014: Blue Trust sold the home for $810,000.

• 8343 Codesa Way

February 2006: Indianapolis Colts purchased the townhouse from Pulte Homes of Indiana for $174,660.

July 2009: Indianapolis Colts transferred the property to Blue Trust "for no consideration."

August 2012: Blue Trust sold the property for $122,500.

In 2007, Kimberly Wundrum listed the townhouse as her home address and corporate headquarters in incorporation papers filed with the Secretary of State for her landscaping business. She also listed the condo as her home address in police reports.

Sources: Marion County property records, Indiana Secretary of State, police reports and court records.

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Posted: Thu Apr 10, 2014 2:57 pm Post subject:

http://www.indystar.com/story/news/2014/04/10/death-irsays-former-friend-ruled-accidental-overdose/7547915/

Quote:

Death of Irsay's former friend ruled accidental overdose

A woman found dead in a townhome given to her last August by Colts owner Jim Irsay died of an accidental drug overdose, according to the coroner's report released Thursday.

Kimberly Wundrum, 42, was found dead March 2 — two weeks before Irsay was arrested on preliminary counts of impaired driving and possession of a controlled substance.

The police report lists evidence gathered at the scene of Wundrum's death as an "orange plate w/white power, straw, razor." The coroner would not release the specific drugs found, but said there was "no suspicion of foul play."

The coroner said an investigation showed Wundrum had an "extensive history of illicit drug abuse." The Indianapolis Star reported that an entity called the "Blue Trust," administered by Colts executives, owned three homes since 2007 that Wundrum listed in public records as her address.

Wundrum's sister, Rhonda Wundrum, who has worked as Irsay's personal masseuse, said in an email that her sister and Irsay were "former friends."

The Colts didn't immediately respond to a question about whether Irsay remains in rehab.

No charges have been filed in Irsay's impaired driving and drug case. Experts said the prosecutor is likely waiting for results from blood drawn from Irsay after his March 16 arrest.

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Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2014 4:48 pm Post subject:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/04/27/peyton-manning-reached-out-to-jim-irsay-says-its-very-personal/

Quote:

Peyton Manning reached out to Jim Irsay, says it’s “very personal”

Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning and Colts owner Jim Irsay have a complicated relationship. Irsay has said many times that he’s thankful for everything Manning did during his tenure with the Colts, but Irsay also cut Manning — and took some veiled swipes at Manning last season, both before and after the Colts beat the Broncos in the regular season.

Now Irsay is getting treatment after he was arrested on charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and felony possession of a controlled substance, and Manning says he reached out to Irsay. But Manning declined to get into what was said.

“That’s a private topic,” Manning told the Associated Press. “It’s very private and very personal.”

Manning’s Broncos will face Irsay’s Colts in the first Sunday night game of the season. It remains to be seen whether Irsay will be back with his team when the season starts.

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Posted: Mon May 19, 2014 6:00 pm Post subject:

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/05/19/jim-irsay-wont-talk-personal-matters-says-hes-clued-into-everything/

Quote:

Jim Irsay won’t talk personal matters, says he’s “clued into” everything

Colts owner Jim Irsay’s daughter said Monday that her father was ready to get back to work and Irsay was doing just that on Monday afternoon.

Irsay is in Atlanta to address the league’s owners as part of Indianapolis’ bid for the 2018 Super Bowl. Irsay spoke to the team’s website about the bid and also met with reporters, telling them that he felt “grateful” to be back and that he hasn’t been totally out of the loop while getting medical treatment after an arrest for driving a vehicle while intoxicated and possession of a controlled substance. Irsay wasn’t talking about that treatment or arrest, though, and he won’t be on Tuesday when he meets the owners either.

“I have been clued into everything for the last few months. I’m not going to talk about personal medical issues,” Irsay said, via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

The league has said that Irsay and other owners are subject to the same disciplinary action that players would face in the same situation, so there might be a time when he’ll have to discuss some of those personal issues with Roger Goodell.

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