It’s been a while since we heard from Johnny Manziel, but that silence came to a screeching halt on Thursday. Manziel is back in the news, but not for a good reason.
Manziel has reached a deal with prosecutors for the conditional dismissal of a domestic assault case with his former girlfriend Colleen Crowley, according to ESPN. Defense attorney Jim Darnell said there’s still work to do, but a hearing on Thursday morning provided a positive way forward for Manziel.
The next hearing is on December 1st and the case could be settled then.
“That’s all in progress,” Darnell said about an agreement. “Until we get something done, if we do, then we’ll announce it.”
The 23-year-old former Heisman winner didn’t respond to questions when he left the courtroom.
“He’s doing OK,” Darnell said of Manziel. “Tough kid.”
The case itself focuses on a night in January when Manziel allegedly hit and threatened his former girlfriend Crowley. Crowley said the two were at a Dallas hotel where Manziel approached her and then forced her into a car. Manziel drove the two to where her car was in front of a Dallas bar. That’s where Manziel got into the driver’s seat of her car and hit her and dragged her back in when she tired to jump out.
The misdemeanor charge could result in a $4,000 fine and potentially up to a year in jail.
“Everybody will be required to be here (at the next hearing),” Judge Roberto Canas said. “Then we will get this case down the road.”
While the tentative deal could end the trial, Manziel still isn’t completely in the clear from legal issues. The former Texas A&M star is also facing a lawsuit for trashing a rental home in Los Angeles and another suit for totaling a loaned car in an April accident.
Even thought it looks unlikely Manziel will ever appear on an NFL field again, the unsigned free agent did serve a four-game suspension to start the 2016 season because of a substance-abuse violation. Additionally, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said the league is reviewing the domestic assault case.
[ESPN]
