Before blossoming into a borderline All-Star and a nightly triple-double threat, Lance Stephenson earned a more dubious distinction: domestic violence suspect.
In August 2010, Stephenson, then 19 years old, was accused of pushing his girlfriend down a flight of stairs in her Brooklyn apartment building. According to police reports at the time, Stephenson then grabbed her and hit her head against the bottom step.
The woman sustained head, back and neck injuries. Stephenson was charged with third-degree assault.
The case was dropped six months later. And Stephenson, then a rookie for the Indiana Pacers, quietly resumed his career—without ever being suspended, fined or otherwise disciplined by the NBA.
There was nothing surprising about the league's inaction.
The NBA has long abided by a basic American principle of jurisprudence: that everyone is innocent until proven guilty; that the legal process must take its course before the league renders judgment. No conviction? No suspension.
This may sound prudent and rational, but it is no longer adequate in a post- ...
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Article written by Howard Beck
NBA Needs to Change Its Stance on Domestic Violence in Post-Ray Rice World
September 26th, 2014 by Howard Beck Leave a reply »
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