Will Jack Swagger be punished for his arrest?

In what has to be disappointing news for some fans as well as the WWE on a whole, current number-one contender for Alberto Del Rio‘s World Heavyweight Championship Jack Swagger was arrested Tuesday night following the Smackdown taping in Biloxi, Mississippi for possession of marijuana and driving under the influence (DUI).

While this was a mistake by Swagger in the first place, it has come at the worst possible time in his career. After a lengthy absence, Swagger returned to WWE a few weeks ago and was immediately pushed to the top of the Smackdown card. After winning the Elimination Chamber match this past Sunday, Swagger was not only poised to face Del Rio at Wrestlemania 29 for the title, but was rumored to be winning the belt as well.

While WWE has not made a decision on a form of punishment (if any) for Swagger, his future with the company now remains uncertain. In addition to disappointing WWE officials with this arrest considering his recent push, the company’s wellness policy states that actions like this could result in Swagger being suspended or worse. The following is an excerpt from the official policy:

Any WWE Talent, who is arrested, convicted or who admits to a violation of law relating to use, possession, purchase, sale or distribution of drugs will be in material breach of his/her contract with WWE and subject to immediate dismissal.

While this doesn’t guarantee that Swagger will be fired (fellow stars Randy Orton, R-Truth and Evan Bourne all have jobs with the company and have all violated the policy in similar ways in the past, but have been suspended rather than fired), it certainly puts his future in doubt. Major pushes for stars have been halted for lesser violations, so it is possible that Swagger could be shunted right back down the card if he is able to keep his job.

Right now, the the World title match at Wrestlemania 29 is still set for Swagger/Del Rio, but that could easily be changed over the next few days as more information on Swagger’s case gets out. He is scheduled to appear in court on March 12th.

Personally, I am not sure what to make of the situation. On one hand, his arrest is for what is considered a minor offense, and several current and former WWE stars have been arrested for the same thing, as well as lesser violations, and not been punished. On the other hand, WWE has been trying to distance themselves from recreational drug use amongst the superstars, and Vince has attempted to make examples out of each of those who decide to imbibe. Both Evan Bourne and R-Truth were suspended for recreational drug use, despite the fact that they were smoking synthetic marijuana, which is legal in the U.S.

Personally, I would suspend Swagger, as he has no one to blame for this but himself. He was in the midst of the biggest moment of his career, and he violated the policy, knowing full well what it stated. Swagger should be punished in hopes that he will learn what a huge mistake he made.