ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (May 24, 2006) -- Denver Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer said he cut someone off while driving last month, but denied kicking and then backing up into another motorist's vehicle in an act of road rage.
Plummer acknowledged cutting off a vehicle because he was in a hurry to deliver a check to charity from his foundation.
"I accidentally cut this person off. I admit that. And I was on my cell phone, which I'm embarrassed to admit that while I was driving, and cut a guy off," Plummer said. "I waved in my rearview mirror and even said sorry while I was talking.
"And all I heard was incessant honking. When I pulled up to the light, I felt a bump on the back of my tailgate, which was very surprising," Plummer said.
He said he got out of his Honda truck to check for damage, then got back in, drove away and called 911 to report what happened.
Plummer was issued a summons for a misdemeanor city violation of "injure or destroy property," similar to criminal mischief under state law.
According to police, witnesses said a man later identified as Plummer kicked the headlight of a Ford pickup on April 20 in suburban Denver and then backed his truck into the pickup before driving away.
The pickup driver, Douglas Stone, 47, of Denver told police he had honked at the Honda when it was cutting in front of other vehicles.
According to a police report, the two cars stopped at a red light and the Honda driver got out and said something to Stone. The comments aren't in the report.
The other driver then returned to the Honda, backed into the pickup and left when the light changed, the report said. A witness wrote down the Honda license plate, which police traced to Plummer.
Stone told KDVR-TV in Denver he didn't realize Plummer was the driver.
"I had no idea," he said. "He was clean-shaven, his hair was long, past his ears, but I did not recognize him or know it to be him."
Plummer has in the past worn a beard. Stone did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press.
The officer in charge of the case didn't contact Plummer until May 19, nearly a month after the incident, because he was busy with other matters, police investigator John Hoehler said.
The police report said Plummer told the officer he was driving to a charity appearance with his girlfriend when he was bumped from behind by another vehicle.
Plummer said he didn't see any damage and so didn't call police until later, according to the report. Hoehler said police hadn't determined when he called or what agency he contacted.
The report said Plummer's car had $200 to $300 in damage and Stone's pickup had about $25 damage to its front license plate holder.
The summons doesn't set a court date but orders Plummer to appear at Englewood's Violations Bureau between June 2 and June 15.
Plummer, Denver's quarterback for three seasons, has received unwelcome attention before. In 2004, he flashed an obscene gesture to a heckler in the home crowd. When a newspaper columnist identified his girlfriend last year, he called the columnist and criticized Broncos fans. He later apologized and said he likes being Denver's quarterback.
