Former Ohio State LB Darron Lee arrested on first-degree murder charge

A former Ohio State University football player is facing a murder charge after his girlfriend was found dead at a home in Tennessee, according to the Hamilton County, Tennessee, Sheriff's office.

Darron Lee, whom the sheriff's office said was the woman's boyfriend, was identified as a suspect and arrested at a home in the 7500 block of Snow Cone Way in Ooltewah, about two hours southeast of Nashville, Tennessee. He faces charges of first-degree murder and tampering with evidence. He may face additional charges as the investigation progresses, according to the sheriff's office.

Lee was a linebacker for Ohio State's 2014 national championship team and was selected the defensive MVP in OSU's 42-35 win over Alabama in the 2015 Sugar Bowl.

Deputies responded to the Ooltewah home on the afternoon of Feb. 5 following a report of CPR in progress on an unnamed woman, according to a sheriff's office news release.

First responders attempted life-saving measures on the woman, but she was deceased, according to the sheriff's office. Due to the condition of the woman and the condition the residence was in, the sheriff's office notified Criminal Investigative Services Detectives.

Preliminary findings from their investigation indicated that the woman's death was the result of a homicide, the sheriff's office said, and Lee was taken into custody. He is being held in the Hamilton County, Tennessee, jail. His next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 11.

Nearly one year ago, Lee accepted a plea deal in February 2025 in Franklin County Municipal Court on misdemeanor charges of possessing a counterfeit controlled substance and aggravated assault.

Under the plea deal, Lee avoided a conviction on a felony charge of domestic violence. The charges stem from an April 3, 2023, incident at a home in Dublin between Lee and a female relative.

Court records say Dublin police arrested Lee after receiving a report from the female relative that Lee had punched her several times in the head. When officers took Lee into custody, he had two bags of a white powder that later laboratory testing confirmed contained cocaine. Court records show Lee was accepted into a drug court program and ordered to serve one day in jail, as well as one year of probation for the drug case. He was also ordered to pay a $500 fine and serve two years of probation.

Lee played high school football at New Albany-Plains Local Schools. He left Ohio State early to declare for the 2016 NFL draft, where he was picked in the first round by the New York Jets. He played for three seasons with the Jets before being suspended four games for a drug violation.

Lee was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2019 and was suspended by the NFL for unspecified reasons in 2020.

Dispatch reporter Bethany Bruner contributed to this report.

Reporter Shahid Meighan can be reached at [email protected], at ShahidMeighan on X, and at shahidthereporter.dispatch.com on Bluesky. 

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ex-Ohio State LB Darron Lee charged with girlfiend's murder in Tennessee