Former Detroit Lions cornerback Cameron Sutton turned himself in to police Sunday night, 11 days after an arrest warrant was issued for charges of domestic battery by strangulation concerning an alleged incident on March 7.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (Fla.) released video of Sutton being booked at the Orient Road Jail at 8:24 p.m. local time on March 31.
On March 7, sheriff’s deputies responded to a call at 4:52 a.m. ET at a residence in Lutz, Fla., near Tampa, and found a woman who had allegedly been battered. Sutton was no longer at the scene.
The 29-year-old was released by the Lions on March 21 after the team learned of the warrant. Team president Rod Wood said on March 25 Sutton was in the team facility and spoke with team officials on March 20, when news of the warrant reached the team. Wood said staff members suggested Sutton seek counsel and turn himself in.
According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office’s news release, Sutton’s attorney contacted the authorities on March 25 to inform them he was going to Tampa (Fla.) to turn himself in to authorities.
In announcing Sutton’s warrant, the sheriff’s office said it has made numerous attempts to contact Sutton — calling him and attempting to reach him at his residence — but those attempts were unsuccessful.
Sutton’s agent did not respond to a request for comment.
Sutton started all 17 games for Detroit in 2023 and tallied 65 tackles, an interception, a forced fumble and six passes defended. The cornerback signed with the Lions before the start of last season after spending six years with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Where the Lions sit now
Detroit was quickly ready to move on from Sutton — who signed a three-year, $33 million contract with the team in 2023 — after the news broke. The organization has long held a zero-tolerance policy on matters of domestic violence, a policy Wood said is still in place at the owners meetings. After talking things over when the news initially broke, the team opted to release Sutton the following morning.
As for Sutton, his lone season with the team was a difficult one, to say the least. He allowed 889 yards and five touchdowns during the regular season, including a 113.9 passer rating when targeted. In the postseason alone, Sutton allowed a 70.8 percent completion rate, 284 yards, three touchdowns and a 150.0 passer rating when targeted across three games.
The Lions have added a pair of cornerbacks this offseason, trading for former Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Carlton Davis III and signing former Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Amik Roberton. Both have starting experience and appear to be Detroit’s best options prior to the draft. The team also re-signed Emmanuel Moseley, who’s coming off a torn ACL.
Lions general manager Brad Holmes addressed the cornerback position with local media at the owners meetings in Orlando, Fla. last week.
“Honestly, I think it was a blessing for the mere fact, like I said, we were able to land Carlton Davis and Amik Robertson,” Holmes said. “So, I do like the competition that we have. There was a reason we re-signed Emmanuel Moseley. I know when players are injured the previous year, they are kind of forgotten about when it comes to free agency.
“So it seems like, ‘Well, we got Carlton Davis, we got Amik Robertson.’ Well, no. Emmanuel Moseley, there’s a reason we re-signed him back. We felt really, really good about it. We like the competition we currently have. We don’t really feel like the Cam Sutton situation altered the landscape of how we’ll approach the draft.” — Colton Pouncy, Lions beat writer
Required reading
(Photo: Mike Mulholland / Getty Images)
