MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Vikings star running back Adrian Peterson is moving fast to discredit the purported circumstances surrounding his arrest early Saturday morning in a Houston bar.

Well known sports attorney Rusty Hardin in Houston tells WCCO radio that information furnished to the media, principally TMZ.com, was not just embellishment, but outright falsehood. This includes information about how long Peterson was at the Bayou Bar, how much he had drank and whether it was Peterson who had instigated the scuffle with Houston Police.

NewsRadio 830 WCCO’s Chris Simon Reports

“That was just a total fabrication, what came from the bar. We spent about 48 hours looking at this thing, we were contacted early Saturday morning, and started interviewing people,” said Hardin. “I am totally satisfied that Adrian never pushed, shoved or hit a police officer and never did anything that justified being arrested.”

Hardin says this is a jailable offense, and Peterson could face up to 30 days. However he says Peterson looks forward to his day in court so that he can defend an image he has very carefully protected from this type of incident during his entire career in Minnesota.

“What I want people in Minneapolis to know is that he is the same Adrian that he was three days ago before this happened,” said Hardin. “He just simply didn’t do this and I hope the people in Minneapolis know that this is totally inconsistent with both his public and private life since he’s been up there.”

Hardin says Peterson is physically fine despite getting hit twice in the face by police. But he is upset due to the possible damage this affair could inflict on his public image. An image he has carefully guarded during his Viking career.

“He has been very careful over the years to avoid this kind of incident, and he knows he didn’t do it and he hopes that his fans just wait for all the facts to come out,” he said. “He was only in that club for 30 to 40 minutes, was never objectionable to other patrons, and never physically resisted any police officer. Adrian looks forward to his day in court.”

Listen To Chris Simon’s Entire Interview With Attorney Rusty Hardin