Newly released video footage appears to show professional football's Ray Rice and his future wife kissing while handcuffed in a casino elevator following the couple's fight that cost Rice his job with the Baltimore Ravens.
The brawl in which Rice, 27, knocked out and dragged an unconscious Janay Palmer, 26, at an Atlantic City casino in February inflamed debate over domestic violence and professional football.
In a surveillance video released to ABC News on Friday through a public records request, several people who appear to be hotel staff can be seen talking to Palmer while she sits in a chair and cries.
Rice sits away from Palmer with his hands behind his back.
Rice and Palmer then appear to kiss and nuzzle while handcuffed, accompanied by several law enforcement officers in an elevator, and are led away to patrol cars.
Palmer appears to cry hysterically on and off throughout the footage, while Rice looks calm.
Rice attempted to block the release of the footage but was unsuccessful, ABC reported.
National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell suspended Rice, a three-time Pro Bowler, in July for two games over the fight.
Goodell's handling of the case raised questions about the effectiveness of the NFL's response to domestic violence and prompted an independent investigation led by former FBI Director Robert Mueller.
After release of surveillance footage in September showing the one-punch knockout, Rice was dropped from the Ravens, losing his $35 million contract, and the NFL suspended him indefinitely.
He was reinstated to the NFL on November 28, but it was unclear if any club would sign the six-year veteran.
It was also not clear how the new video footage would affect his job hunt. Rice's attorney did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Saturday.
Copyright Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.
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