Artest Faces Four Misdemeanor Charges
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Artest Faces Four Misdemeanor Charges
Kings Forward Accused Of Domestic Violence
POSTED: 9:37 am PDT March 21, 2007
UPDATED: 9:49 am PDT March 21, 2007
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SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Sacramento Kings forward Ron Artest faces four misdemeanor charges stemming from a domestic dispute at his home earlier this month.
The charges were filed late Tuesday. Placer County deputy district attorney Dan Quick said Artest will be arraigned Thursday on charges of battery and corporal injury to a spouse, false imprisonment and dissuading a witness from reporting a crime. Each carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison.
Artest was arrested March 5 at his estate in Loomis. He was released from custody after posting a $50,000 bond.
A Placer County sheriff's report said Artest grabbed a woman and pushed her down, then slapped her face during an argument. The report said Artest took a phone from the woman the first time she tried to call 911.
When she reached 911, the woman at first complained that Artest was taking a vehicle from the home, according to a recording of the call released by the sheriff's department. The woman then told a dispatcher that her finger was cut and leg scratched, and that she broke the windshield of the vehicle.
Five days after his arrest, Artest said he'd stumbled as a father and husband and apologized to his wife and family, as well as to the Kings and his teammates.
He sat out two games, but was not suspended and continued to receive his salary.
Calls Wednesday to Artest's attorney, William Portanova, and his agent, Mark Stevens, were not immediately returned.
Kings spokesman Darrin May said he had no immediate comment.
Quick declined to comment on whether he expects Artest's case to go to a jury and said the case would be handled like any other.
"We're not really looking at this differently than any other case," he said.
Quick, who had said he would review photographs from the scene, the 911 tape and other evidence before deciding whether to pursue the case, declined to say what led him to file charges.
"I can't really discuss the facts," he said.
While the four misdemeanors each carry the possibility of jail time, the crimes are classified in such a way that Artest could not be sentenced to prison for all four.
It was the latest in a string of incidents that has marred Artest's basketball career.
As a member of the Indiana Pacers, he was the central figure in the 2004 brawl with Detroit Pistons fans. He received a 73-game suspension and lost almost $5 million in salary for jumping into the stands and throwing punches. Artest and teammate Stephen Jackson were sentenced to one year of probation and 60 hours of community service after pleading no contest to misdemeanor assault charges.
Artest joined the Kings in January 2006.
Sheriff's deputies said they have responded to 911 calls from Artest's home five other times since last August, and at least two of the calls involving domestic disturbances.
Last month, county animal-control officers seized his Great Dane, Socks, because it wasn't being fed. The dog has since been released to the custody of one of Artest's lawyers.
