Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green will avoid jail time after reaching a plea deal with prosecutors following his arrest for slapping an MSU football player in East Lansing, Michigan earlier this month.
The terms of the deal mean Green, who had faced a charge of misdemeanor assault and battery, will pay a $500 fine and $60 restitution fee for a civil violation. Green’s attorney, James Heos, said on Friday that the violation is akin to a parking ticket.
Assistant city prosecutor David Meyers said the deal involves neither a guilty nor a no contest plea, since the infraction is not a criminal charge.
“The plea agreement reached with Mr Green is in accordance with our normal plea bargain procedures and guidelines for a case with similar circumstances, evidence and witness statements,” Meyers said. “We simply treated Mr Green no differently than any other defendant that we prosecute.”
But Green is forbidden from contact with Jermaine Edmondson, the player involved in the altercation, for one year. If he contacts Edmondson within that time frame or is convicted of a new criminal charge within one year, Meyers said, the original charge would be reinstated.
Green was accused of slapping Edmondson, a former MSU defensive back, outside a restaurant near campus. Police say they witnessed the incident. Heos says Green was defending himself.
Edmondson was released from the school on 13 July. In a statement announcing the release, MSU coach Mark Dantonio said Edmondson wanted to play a larger role on the team and felt it was in his best interest to finish his playing career elsewhere.
Green, 26, is in Las Vegas with the USA basketball team preparing for the Olympics, which begin in Rio de Janeiro on 5 August.
The power forward appeared in 81 games for the Warriors last season and started 23 games in Golden State’s playoff run to the NBA finals, where they lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in seven games.
Green played four seasons for Michigan State under coach Tom Izzo.
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