A judge in Cleveland put boxer Adrien Broner in jail on Monday after holding him in contempt of court. The situation related to a civil lawsuit filed by a woman he allegedly assaulted at a nightclub in 2018. He will now remain in jail until he provides “complete and truthful information about his finances” to the woman’s attorney.
According to Cleveland.com, Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Nancy Margaret Russo found that Broner failed to cooperate with multiple deadlines she set for him to hand over documents and evidence showing why he has not been able to pay the woman. A judge ordered him in December to pay more than $800,000. “Mr. Broner has continually defied every court order I’ve given,” Russo said on Monday. “The jig is up today.”
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During the hearing, Russo cited an Instagram video that showed Broner handling large stacks of cash. He showed stacks of $20s and $50s before panning the camera to show multiple piles of $100s. The hashtag [Give Me Another 100,000] drew particular attention due to Broner claiming in an Oct. 5 court filing that he only had $13 in cash to his name.
The judge set a Wednesday hearing for Broner and his attorney, Stanley Jackson, where they will have to show they are complying in the case. With the ruling delivered, Cuyahoga County sheriff’s deputies placed the boxer in handcuffs and led him out of the courtroom.
Broner was originally charged in 2018 with gross sexual imposition, a fourth-degree felony, misdemeanor sexual imposition and abduction, a third-degree felony. A 35-year-old Wickliffe woman accused him of sexually assaulting her at a nightclub in Cleveland during the 2018 NBA Finals. He later pleaded guilty in April 2019 to assault and unlawful restraint, both misdemeanors. A judge placed him on a two-year probation.
The woman filed a civil lawsuit against Broner, but he did not hire a lawyer or show up to the hearings. Russo ruled in the woman’s favor and later ordered Broner to hand over information about his finances to her lawyer, Subodh Chandra, after he did not pay the judgment. The COVID-19 pandemic pushed the hearings back several months, prompting Russo’s orders for Broner to hand over his information.
According to Cleveland.com, the lawyer said that the information handed over by Broner and Jackson was incomplete and insufficient, making it impossible for him to prepare questions for a deposition. The pair further exasperated Russo by arriving late to Monday’s hearing, the second time since August. The judge called the tardiness unacceptable and “continued disrespect of my time.”
