While he was expected as one of the big fish of the Free Agency, Miles Bridges has not had the leisure for a few weeks to see his name in the sports section of the newspaper but rather in that dealing with miscellaneous facts. Arrested on June 29 by the Los Angeles police following accusations of domestic violence against his partner and mother of his children, then released on bail, his trial has just opened in California. We take stock.
Here is once again the kind of info that we would like not to have to deal with here. After being released following the payment of a bail of 130,000 dollars, the first hearings opened yesterday in the context of the “Miles Bridges affair”. What do we blame the Hornets winger for? Of having beaten his partner in front of his children, as well as of having physically abused them to the point of putting their physical integrity in danger. Here are literally the terms that are used by the magistrate in charge of the case. To be quite precise, ESPN indicates that the abuse charges on his two children were not directly related to when Bridges got his hands on his wife. Nevertheless, the little ones were present during the altercation. Heard by the court, Miles pleaded not guilty, and the next step is now set for August 19, since it is on this date that the preliminary hearing should in all likelihood be held. It will therefore be necessary – a minima – wait for this date so that some light is shed on this matter.
In parallel with the Californian justice, the NBA is also taking the necessary information to decide on a possible sanction against the player. Beyond the damage caused by Bridges to the image of the Big League, the real question is whether we will see this boy on the basketball court again, and if so… when. To reason a little coldly, his contract with the Hornets is about to expire and there is little chance that the franchise will want to extend it under such conditions. We also imagine that Adam Silver probably made two or three phone calls behind the scenes to “freeze” the negotiations around the player, just to avoid making matters worse and afford such negative publicity. However, it is difficult to imagine that the league can impose a sanction before a recognized court has first done so. If the season were to resume by then? Well Bridges would be left aside until a deliberation is pronounced since, as mentioned above, no team currently has any obligations vis-à-vis him.
Here is the current status of the Miles Bridges case. As with any similar case, the investigators and the justice system will have to be given time to do their job in order to be able to hold a trial that is fair for all parties involved. Until then, we will obviously monitor the information that will emanate from the Californian authorities in connection with these accusations. In short, the kind of info that we would like not to have to deal with here.
Source : ESPN via AP