Charlotte Hornets: Jeff Taylor Pleads Guilty, Faces Potential Jail Time
By Jon Shames
It doesn’t look like Jeff Taylor will be seeing the court any time soon.
The Charlotte Hornets suspended Taylor from all team activities last month after he was arrested on domestic abuse and destruction of property charges in late September. The incident occurred at a Marriott Hotel in East Lansing, Mich., when Taylor allegedly assaulted both his (former) girlfriend and a hotel employee.
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He was arrested on-scene.
It was originally reported that Taylor would plead not guilty, but according to multiple sources, NBC Charlotte among them, the Hornets wing decided to plead guilty on Wednesday to one domestic assault charge as well as one count of malicious destruction to a building (Taylor damaged the hotel wall).
The third charge, an additional count of assault and battery, was dismissed.
Taylor could find himself with a 93-day jail sentence. However, the prosecution reportedly did not object to the judge permitting Taylor to enter a probation diversion program, which would be in place of his jail sentence. Taylor joining this program could result in the removal of the domestic assault charge from his criminal record as well.
As stated before, the Hornets decided to suspend Taylor from all team activities after his initial arrest, and while they have yet to comment on his plea, chances are the suspension won’t be revoked any time soon. It’s tough to see the Hornets taking this lightly, especially in light of recent domestic-abuse related events involving numerous NFL players. Taylor was only charged with a single count–a misdemeanor, at that–but the Hornets’ management needs to set a precedent; it cannot be soft with Taylor.
In the past 10 years, only two players have been suspended by the league due to domestic assault charges. In the past three years alone, nine players have been charged with domestic abuse. The NBA currently has an automatic 10-game suspension policy for any violence-related felonies, however most of the charges previously cited were misdemeanors.
There has already been a considerable amount of demand for the NBA to change its domestic violence policy, with TNT’s Charles Barkley to be the most recent advocate for change.
"“I think Adam Silver should come out right now and say ‘Hey, once you’re convicted of hitting a woman, you’re getting ten games..but the second time you do that, your ass is never playing in the NBA again.”"
Silver, the rookie commissioner, has already been praised by the basketball community for his excellent job handling the Donald Sterling fiasco. Last week, he promised to further examine the NBA’s policy on domestic abuse. Should anything change, expect the league to make an example of Taylor.
The Hornets would take a hit losing Taylor, who was actually fairly productive during his most recent season, which was cut short due to an Achilles injury. But as good as he was for Charlotte, there is absolutely no place in the NBA for domestic abuse, and thus, Taylor should — and likely will — be dealt with accordingly.