The National Football League is conducting a review of San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York’s conduct following his recent arrest in Ohio on charges related to a prostitution sting, Commissioner Roger Goodell confirmed Wednesday during the league’s owners’ meetings in Atlanta. Goodell stated that the incident is being examined under the NFL’s personal conduct policy, and the league will provide updates when appropriate.
York was apprehended on Sunday by the Mahoning Valley Human Trafficking Task Force in East Palestine, Ohio, after attempting to pay $160 for sex with a woman he believed to be a prostitute. He was taken into custody at a mobile home park, booked, and later released upon posting a $5,000 bond.
Initially charged with engaging in prostitution, prosecutors subsequently amended the charges to disorderly conduct. York pleaded no contest to this charge as well as to possessing criminal tools, related to his use of a phone to respond to an undercover online prostitution advertisement. He received a one-day jail sentence for both offenses, served concurrently with credit for time already served, in addition to a $1,150 fine. The $160 York attempted to pay was confiscated by the police and later allocated to the human trafficking task force as part of his plea agreement. York also completed an online educational course.
York has spent much of the summer in Ohio, near his hometown of Youngstown. Court records indicate he filed for divorce from his wife, Danielle York, in May.
The NFL has a history of disciplining owners for various misconduct under its personal conduct policy. In 2014, the late Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay was suspended six games and fined $500,000 after pleading guilty to driving while impaired. In 2019, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft was investigated but received no punishment following his arrest in Florida on allegations of soliciting prostitution at a massage parlor. Those charges were later dropped after a court ruled that law enforcement violated Kraft’s rights by secretly installing surveillance cameras inside the spa.
The league’s review of York’s case is ongoing, and further action will depend on the findings related to the personal conduct policy.
