Aldon Smith had a BAC of .40 — five times the legal limit — when arrested Friday, and it's a miracle he's alive

Zach Pereles
·2 min read
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When troubled former star pass rusher Aldon Smith was arrested on April 6, it was yet another sad turn in what has been an extreme downward spiral for the former Raider and 49er. The details that have emerged from the arrest, though, are even more shocking: At the time of his arrest Friday night, Smith posted a blood alcohol content of .40 — five times the legal limit — per a report from TMZ.

For the last month-plus, Smith, 28, has gathered a long list of legal troubles. On March 3, Smith was accused in a domestic violence incident in which he “threw [the victim] around the room, bit her on the wrist and climbed out the window,” according to a police dispatch call via KTVU in San Francisco. The Raiders released Smith shortly thereafter, and he turned himself in on March 6 on charges of willful infliction of corporal injury, assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury, false imprisonment and vandalism of less than $400.

Just weeks later, he was again arrested for violating a court order to stay away from the victim of the March 3 accusation, per the San Francisco Chronicle’s Evan Sernoffsky. Smith had contacted the victim — exact details on the contact were not released — and was was held on suspicion of three counts of misdemeanor violation of a protective order. Smith was later released and placed under electronic monitoring. He was ordered to stay completely sober.

Aldon Smith is in jail once again. (AP Photo)
Aldon Smith is in jail once again. (AP Photo)

As TMZ’s report shows, Smith violated that rule as well. A BAC of .40 is enough to kill a person. “You are probably in a coma,” states a report from Barnard College. “The nerve centers controlling your heartbeat and respiration are slowing down. It’s a miracle if you’re not dead.”

Per the TMZ report, prosecutors and defense attorneys are looking into sending Smith, who last played in the NFL in 2015, to an inpatient substance abuse facility. Smith is currently in jail, and he will likely remain there until his next hearing Friday.