Former NFL quarterback Mark Sanchez was booked and released at the Marion County Jail on Sunday, telling a reporter as he left the jail that he was focused on his recovery from stab wounds he suffered in the altercation that resulted in multiple charges against him.
Sanchez was released from an Indianapolis hospital Sunday to be processed at the jail, a condition set by the judge before Sanchez would be allowed to leave the state.
Speaking to a Fox/CBS Indianapolis reporter while leaving, Sanchez thanked the first responders, in particular the surgeon who operated on him, appearing emotional as he said she saved his life.
“Sorry I can’t answer all your questions,” Sanchez said, adding that he was recovering slowly.
Sanchez is facing a felony battery charge along with multiple misdemeanors after he allegedly attacked a truck driver outside an Indianapolis hotel Oct. 4. Sanchez had been in the city to serve as a Fox Sports analyst for a Raiders–Colts game Oct. 5.
A police affidavit alleges that the 38-year-old Sanchez, smelling of alcohol, accosted 69-year-old truck driver Perry Tole in a confrontation that escalated to the point that Tole pulled out a knife to defend himself and stabbed Sanchez multiple times in the upper right torso. The driver also had pepper-sprayed Sanchez after feeling threatened.
Tole also suffered injuries in the incident and has sued Sanchez and Fox Corp. The lawsuit says Tole has sustained “severe permanent disfigurement, loss of function, other physical injuries, emotional distress and other damages” due to Sanchez’s alleged actions.
Authorities have said the altercation began over a parking dispute, and Marion County prosecutor Ryan Mears has said the investigation was ongoing and additional charges were possible.
The felony charge against Sanchez carries a potential sentence of one to six years in prison. The next scheduled date in the criminal court case is a pretrial conference Nov. 5.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
