Violent on the court: When professional athletes lash out

Kobe Bryant was charged with felony sexual assault against a 19 year old woman working at an exclusive spa where he was staying in Colorado during the summer of 2003. The victim accused Bryant of raping her the night before he was set to undergo knee surgery. Bryant confessed to having sexual relations with the spa worker but denied the sexual assault allegations. These allegations hurt Bryant’s reputation and cost him many endorsements, but the charges were eventually dropped after his accuser failed to testify in the trial. Later a civil suit was filed against Bryant by his accuser which ended in a settlement for an undisclosed amount of money.Wide receiver Chad Ochocinco confused football with real life when he grabbed his then wife, Evelyn Lozada, and head-butted her after she found a receipt for condoms in his car. Lozada was having none of it however and immediately called the cops to have him arrested. Ochocinco received a domestic violence charge of simple battery and did not contest her request for a divorce. Running Back OJ Simpson, is one of the most recognized athletes not only for his on field abilities but also in one of our nation's biggest murder trials. In 1994 Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman were brutally murdered and Simpson was charged with their deaths. This lead to one of the most televised trials in our history and a split amongst the people as the nation took sides as to his innocence and guilt. Simpson was eventually acquitted of the charges but would run into further trouble with the law in recent years.View the list »
In the most recent sports scandal, Paralympian turned Olympian, Oscar Pistorius, shot and killed his model girlfriend on Valentines Day 2013. The athlete claims that the shooting was an accident, however many believe that it was done in cold blood. He was recently released on bail until the trial proceedings.  

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With latest news of the Oscar Pistorius murder charge, On Feb 22, the South African Court does not consider Pistorius a flight risk and has granted him bail. His bail has been set to $113,000 with $11,300 in cash up front and proof of the remainder. His lawyers argued that his disability prevents him from being a flight risk, presenting that alarms would go off through security drawing attention to the celebrity. It has even been said that the prosecution failed to prove Pistorius has a “propensity for violence.”

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Pistorious isn't the first athlete to demonstrate violence. There have been many athletes over time who have been sited for violent crimes; the outcomes of the judicial system varies among these professional players. Here’s a list of athletes you may or may not have known to exercise violent behavior in our society. The question is, are we allowing athletes leeway for their violent actions?

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  • In the most recent sports scandal, Paralympian turned Olympian, Oscar Pistorius, shot and killed his model girlfriend on Valentines Day 2013. The athlete claims that the shooting was an accident, however many believe that it was done in cold blood. He was recently released on bail until the trial proceedings.  
  • Running Back OJ Simpson, is one of the most recognized athletes not only for his on field abilities but also in one of our nation's biggest murder trials. In 1994 Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman were brutally murdered and Simpson was charged with their deaths. This lead to one of the most televised trials in our history and a split amongst the people as the nation took sides as to his innocence and guilt. Simpson was eventually acquitted of the charges but would run into further trouble with the law in recent years.
  • Wide receiver Chad Ochocinco confused football with real life when he grabbed his then wife, Evelyn Lozada, and head-butted her after she found a receipt for condoms in his car. Lozada was having none of it however and immediately called the cops to have him arrested. Ochocinco received a domestic violence charge of simple battery and did not contest her request for a divorce. 
  • Kobe Bryant was charged with felony sexual assault against a 19 year old woman working at an exclusive spa where he was staying in Colorado during the summer of 2003. The victim accused Bryant of raping her the night before he was set to undergo knee surgery. Bryant confessed to having sexual relations with the spa worker but denied the sexual assault allegations. These allegations hurt Bryant’s reputation and cost him many endorsements, but the charges were eventually dropped after his accuser failed to testify in the trial. Later a civil suit was filed against Bryant by his accuser which ended in a settlement for an undisclosed amount of money.
  • Steven Jackson, starting running back for the St. Louis Rams, in March of 2010 had problems off the field when he was accused of assaulting his pregnant girlfriend. He allegedly beat her until she was bleeding heavily while she was 9 months pregnant, the incident occurred in 2009 but accusations were not brought forward until 2010. Jackson was “disheartend” to have to defend himself against these allegations and also stated they were untrue. 
  • Formerly known as Ron Artest, Metta ignited one of the NBA’s biggest player/fan brawls in leagues history. As a member of the Indiana Pacers, Metta fouled the Detroit Pistons Ben Wallace, which began a shoving match between the two players. While their altercation was being broken up, Metta decided to rest on the scorer’s table, which lead to a fan hitting him with a cup of Diet Coke. Metta jump into the first row and confronted the fan, who he believed threw the drink, which, incidentally, was not the correct person.  A brawl erupted between Piston fans and Pacer players.As a result, Metta was suspended for the rest of the season. Recently Metta was in trouble with the league for a viscious elbow thrown to the head of, then Oklahoma City’s James Harden.
  • In one of the biggest scandals in figure skating history, Tonya Harding’s name became synonymous scandal with the attack on competitor Nancy Kerrigan. This happened during a practice session for the 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships. Harding’s ex-husband and bodyguard allegedly hired someone to break Kerrigans leg so that the skater could not compete. Although they didn't succeed in breaking her leg, the skater's injuries were severe enough to prohibit competition.In a plea bargain, Harding managed to avoid jail time but her name will forever be associated the ugly aspects of competitive sports.
  • Jayson Williams was not a stranger to violence approaching his murder charges. In 1992 he was accused of breaking a beer mug over someone’s head. In another incident, he fired an assault weapon in a parking lot. Somehow, the athlete was not charged in either incident.Things got serious in February of 2002, however,  when limo driver, Costas Christofi, was fatally shot William's estate. Williams was allegedly playing with a shotgun when it accidentally went off killing Christofi. Although Williams was acquitted of many of the other charges, reckless manslaughter stuck and he was convicted on four counts of trying to cover up the shooting. After appeals, Williams finally plead guilty to aggrivated manslaughter in 2010 and was sentenced to 5 years. He was released as of April 2012. 
  • Latrell Sprewell was no stranger to violence, as one altercation with a teammate ended with a brutal fight with a piece of wood. Sprewell gained great media presence in 1997 when he responded to his coach's instruction by choking him.During practice, Sprewell told his coach he was not in the mood for criticism, in response to the request to "tighten his passes," the player confronted his coach and dragged him by his throat.  This lead to the voiding of his Warrior contract and a one year suspension by the league.
  • Bob Knight’s reputation for being a hot-headed college basketball coach was solidified when he was caught on camera choking Neil Reed in 1997. As a result the Hall of Famer was put on a zero-tolerance notice by the then current president of the university. Knight was fired in 2000 after a student alleged that the coach had grabbed his arm. He continued coaching for other universities but could never seem to shake that nasty temper.
  • It seems Tito Oritz can’t keep his anger in the UFC ring. In 2010, the fighter was arrested on domestic violence charges for assaulting adult actress Jenna Jameson. Jameson had visible injuries and was seen wearing a medical brace on her right arm after the incident. Ortiz accused her of being addicted to OxyContin and being erratic. Ortiz’s previous stint in jail and pleading guilty to charges of battery were used by lawyers as proof of his violent personality.
  • A domestic dispute involving hair pulling and arm twisting of ex-girlfriend, Josie Harris, landed boxing champion Floyd Maywether behind bars for 90 days in June of 2012.
  • Quarterback Ben Roethlisburger lost his Big Ben Beef Jerky endorsement when a former Harrah’s Lake Tahoe host claimed he lured her into his penthouse and forced her to have sex with him. She also alleged that other Harrah’s employees were complicit in covering up the rape. The case was settled out of court but no details were released concerning the settlement.Roethlisburger also faced similar allegations from a 20-year-old college student in Georgia but in that case, authorities filed no charges. He was suspended for six games for violating the NFL’s code of conduct as a result of the incident. 
  • DIn June of 2007, after the completion of a race, Driver Danica Patrick confronted  Dan Wheldon. In an impressive feat, Patrick had moved from 17th to 4th place before Wheldon aggressively closed in on her car. After the race, Patrick stormed over to Weldon who was evidently ignoring her rant. Patrick eventually shoved wheldon before stomping away. This incident garnered a lot of press coverage, most likely due to Patrick’s constant struggle to gain respect in the racing industry as well as her tiny 5’2, 100 lbs frame. 
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Damian Desiree is Brooklyn transplant living in Los Angeles to pursue acting. Damian was bitten by the acting bug as a sophomore at Baruch College in New York City where he obtained his BA in Communications; by taking an acting class to open him up as an orator he instantly fell in love with the...

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