Reports: Marcell Ozuna Arrested For Domestic Battery

[bravesfanMatt]

taking this deal is not an admission of guilt, it is a means to an end. it obfuscates his arrest and gets him back to normal day to day activities quicker than waiting on a trail. The DA decided to offer this plea because they probably wanted something for the arrest... fines and fees.. but they probably both know if it went to trail, he would be found innocent or guilty of a much lessor charge. But no one wants to wait another half year to get to that point. Plus they were clearly fighting and probably yelling and breaking things.. The judge would have probably ordered family counseling or something to the effect.

Since we now have no clue as to what really happened, it is not fair to judge him as a domestic abuser. He got in a fight with his wife. We have all done that if you are/were married. Hell my wife threw a wedge heel at me once and put a hole in the sheetrock. She is not an abuser and luckily her aim sucks.

[Southcack77]

What do you think the last two months constitute? I'm sure the fingers have been rehabbed since before the All Star break.

I think some punishment is appropriate. I just cannot abide the "he's played his last game with the Braves" "release him and eat the money" "he's an abuser, that's all I need to know" crowd.

Thank God there's a player's union that will take the unpopular stand and defend his rights when there's a mob outside with pitchforks and torches.

I agree with you. I think the legal system is pretty capable of determining the appropriate penalty. If they are not, then MLB is capable of adding on additional problems.

If the organization then wants to part ways, then that's certainly their right as well. I don't need Ozuna to be a Brave for any particular reason. Moving off his contract might be a good baseball move if it could be done, but I would really hate to eat a lot of money.

But people on their high horses about people they don't know and events they know nothing about looking for harrumphs about their principled stands...don't really enjoy that at all.

[Carp]

Sam Dyson was never charged, there was no evidence beyond the girlfriend's account that I know of, and he got 162 games. So I think there is some nuance here.

We don't know the details in that particular case. Perhaps Dyson wasn't willing to cooperate in the investigation. It's also entirely possible she never filed charges for whatever reason, but had sufficient evidence that the MLB found it necessary to suspend him.


Whatever the case, the MLB will undoubtedly do their due diligence here. If there isn't enough evidence

[McCann'sCans]

Yes, you are being judgmental. An arrest is not a conviction. The diversionary program is not an admission of guilt; to the contrary, the remaining charges (misdemeanor) are dismissed if he completes the program.

I didn't decide that the wife is a psycho-bitch, I just condensed the information I have on her behavior into a label. She came at him last year with a knife, apparently not for the first time. I saw a report saying she was doing the same thing this time. Lastly, there was obviously something that didn't line up with the police report in the bodycam footage - if they had video of him doing what the report said he did, the prosecutor would surely have taken advantage of that and gotten an easy conviction rather than reducing the charge and pleading the case out.

What I am further saying is that he has (and will continue) to pay consequences for his actions, including the loss of respect from many fans including you, a substantial forfeiture of income, and the tasks he needs to complete for that program. And I don't think that MLB and the Braves' lack of action causes one to infer that they think he's guilty or not guilty. I think they have less information than the Fulton County DA and were waiting to see how he was handled before taking up the situation themselves.

I understand your strong feelings on this. It's an emotional topic, and much (most?) of the time the male is abusive and deserves major consequences. Unfortunately I have been involved in real-life situations where the opposite was true - it was the female - and if it hadn't been for crucial, incontrovertible evidence of her misbehavior, the male's life would have been destroyed, largely because of the assumptions we all start with. So I am rather adamant about not jumping to conclusions with Marcell.

Appreciate the perspective and the measured response. I'm fine not passing judgement on Marcell based on reports, but if that is going to be the mindset then judgment also shouldn't be passed on his wife based on reports. We should all just let the process play out and see where the chips fall.

I continue to believe that if there is evidence that he abused his wife, I don't want him on the team. I don't think 'she did it first' is a good excuse for physically assaulting a woman- its a good excuse to get a divorce and move on with your life. There are certainly cases where the shoe is on the other foot (not to steal from Matt's story), and I would say the same in that case.

My perspective on the guilty plea- my mother has made a career working with the wrongfully accused. She has represented dozens of men convicted of murders and rapes that they did not commit and ultimately gotten them exonerated based on DNA evidence that wasn't available at the time of trial. In every case, those men turned down plea deals that would have spared them literally decades in prison because they wanted their name cleared as 'innocent', not as 'plead guilty and released early'. Perhaps that shades my view on what it says about people who take plea deals, which may or may not be fair.

[Carp]

Appreciate the perspective and the measured response. I'm fine not passing judgement on Marcell based on reports, but if that is going to be the mindset then judgment also shouldn't be passed on his wife based on reports. We should all just let the process play out and see where the chips fall.

I continue to believe that if there is evidence that he abused his wife, I don't want him on the team. I don't think 'she did it first' is a good excuse for physically assaulting a woman- its a good excuse to get a divorce and move on with your life. There are certainly cases where the shoe is on the other foot (not to steal from Matt's story), and I would say the same in that case.

My perspective on the guilty plea- my mother has made a career working with the wrongfully accused. She has had dozens of exonerations of men convicted of murders and rapes that they did not commit and were ultimately exonerated of based on DNA evidence that wasn't available at the time of trial. In every case, those men turned down plea deals that would have spared them literally decades in prison because they wanted their name cleared as 'innocent', not as 'plead guilty and released early'. Perhaps that shades my view on what it says about people who take plea deals, which may or may not be fair.

I have a bit of different perspective in this case. With her being abusive in the past, it's entirely possible he was fighting back. I'm pretty much never in favor of hitting a woman, but if the woman wants to throw hands you gotta protect yourself in some way.

[bravesfanMatt]

Appreciate the perspective and the measured response. I'm fine not passing judgement on Marcell based on reports, but if that is going to be the mindset then judgment also shouldn't be passed on his wife based on reports. We should all just let the process play out and see where the chips fall.

I continue to believe that if there is evidence that he abused his wife, I don't want him on the team. I don't think 'she did it first' is a good excuse for physically assaulting a woman- its a good excuse to get a divorce and move on with your life. There are certainly cases where the shoe is on the other foot (not to steal from Matt's story), and I would say the same in that case.

My perspective on the guilty plea- my mother has made a career working with the wrongfully accused. She has represented dozens of men convicted of murders and rapes that they did not commit and ultimately gotten them exonerated based on DNA evidence that wasn't available at the time of trial. In every case, those men turned down plea deals that would have spared them literally decades in prison because they wanted their name cleared as 'innocent', not as 'plead guilty and released early'. Perhaps that shades my view on what it says about people who take plea deals, which may or may not be fair.

This is exactly why you take the plea deal.. you don't know what could happen in a court room, with a judge and jury. Sometimes you are guilty before the first piece of evidence is presented, just based on how you look. If you can make it go away with little or no hassle, then you take that. A bird in the hand is better than two in the bush. Sometimes making a problem go away is better than solving it. Even if it makes you look momentarily less desirable in the publics eye.

[bravesfanMatt]

I have a bit of different perspective in this case. With her being abusive in the past, it's entirely possible he was fighting back. I'm pretty much never in favor of hitting a woman, but if the woman wants to throw hands you gotta protect yourself in some way.

I always found shielding my face with one of our kids slowed her down. had to make sure it was one she liked or it proved to just provoke her more.

[McCann'sCans]

I have a bit of different perspective in this case. With her being abusive in the past, it's entirely possible he was fighting back. I'm pretty much never in favor of hitting a woman, but if the woman wants to throw hands you gotta protect yourself in some way.

Absolutely- if a woman is coming at you with a knife, you have every right to take her to the ground. But I would also echo what others have said early on in this thread- Ozuna is a big man and a professional athlete. While his wife also seems to be an athlete I have a hard time believing that he couldn't have a) kept her subdued while he awaits the authorities or b) gotten away from her.

Certainly if it comes out that she came after him trying to hurt him and he simply pinned her against the wall while waiting for police to arrive, I'll have no issue. But there is a difference between defending yourself and joining the fight.

[NYCBrave]

taking this deal is not an admission of guilt, it is a means to an end. it obfuscates his arrest and gets him back to normal day to day activities quicker than waiting on a trail. The DA decided to offer this plea because they probably wanted something for the arrest... fines and fees.. but they probably both know if it went to trail, he would be found innocent or guilty of a much lessor charge. But no one wants to wait another half year to get to that point. Plus they were clearly fighting and probably yelling and breaking things.. The judge would have probably ordered family counseling or something to the effect.

Since we now have no clue as to what really happened, it is not fair to judge him as a domestic abuser. He got in a fight with his wife. We have all done that if you are/were married. Hell my wife threw a wedge heel at me once and put a hole in the sheetrock. She is not an abuser and luckily her aim sucks.

If it's not an admission of guilt, then why does he need to go to a family violence program and be under supervision for 6 months? Clearly a violent situation occurred here. We can only speculate on what happens until tape is released or it comes out, but this is not simply dropping charges.

[NYCBrave]

If he stays out the rest of the season, that will have been tantamount to 80 games (since the fingers have been healed enough to come off the IL). That enough?

I'm not giving you my personal opinion on what I think should happen. I'm giving you my opinion on what I think MLB will do based on how they've handled previous situations like this.

[Carp]

If it's not an admission of guilt, then why does he need to go to a family violence program and be under supervision for 6 months? Clearly a violent situation occurred here. We can only speculate on what happens until tape is released or it comes out, but this is not simply dropping charges.

Because that's generally how plea deals work. The sentence is far less severe and your fate isn't decided by a jury.

[bravesfanMatt]

If it's not an admission of guilt, then why does he need to go to a family violence program and be under supervision for 6 months? Clearly a violent situation occurred here. We can only speculate on what happens until tape is released or it comes out, but this is not simply dropping charges.

You are literally reading the black and white version. There is a lot of grey here. If you understand law at all you know innocent people take deals all the time. they don't want the risk, time, hassle or expense of a trail to be proven innocent. I am saying what he is doing doesn't mean he is really guilty of being a wife beater. He is taking a deal to get to an end. Does that mean he is not a wife beater, NO!! We just don't know.

From what I read his deal is basically do a few things in your spare time and have your record obfuscated. That is a really good deal to take if offered. He can put the legal ordeal behind him and move on with the MLB side of the ordeal now. Time is a very precious commodity to athletes.

[PawPawMaxwell]

Just my 2 cents. Just minutes ago announced that Trevor Bauer is done/out for the season while investigation continues from MLB. Are Ozuna's and Bauers situations being held in reserve as bargaining points for the upcoming CBA?

[Southcack77]

I can totally understand why Ozuna would accept a diversion program that 1) ended the first stage of his professional limbo 2) did not result in conviction or admission of guilt and 3) avoided the uncertainty of trial both as to date and result.

If Atlanta is much like my jurisdiction, I kind of doubt they are giving much court time to he said / she said domestic cases without any serious injuries given what I presume is a Covid backlog.

I think most lawyers probably have a story or two about being overconfident about what seemed like an easy enough case or hearing and getting a bad result. I don't do criminal though shared space with criminal lawyers for many years and heard stories.

Even in civil practice I watched a very fresh out lawyer who shouldn't have taken a criminal case take a misdemeanor battery to trial. Seemed easy enough. The accusation was literally that his client had tapped another parent on the shoulder to get her attention. That's what came out in trial. His client took the L. Totally ridiculous result, IMO, but it happens. Case should have been disposed of outside the courtroom but he didn't know that and our boss gave it no thought at all.

Closest I have come to that was losing a summary judgment motion where the law was clear in my mind. I'd spent five years arguing these cases in front of judges who ruled my way every time, but got a judge from somewhere else who hadn't seen those cases and took an L.

Messing around with uncertain outcomes when you can choose your own adventure is a really risky business.

[zbhargrove]

That is not what the program means. There is no admission of guilt. The charges are withdrawn if he completes the program in good order.

I said "basically" as in the way the league probably views it... not necessarily what it means in reality. Considering the league has penalized players severely when charges weren't even filed in the first place, I'm not so sure my take is wrong.

[GovClintonTyree]

If it's not an admission of guilt, then why does he need to go to a family violence program and be under supervision for 6 months? Clearly a violent situation occurred here. We can only speculate on what happens until tape is released or it comes out, but this is not simply dropping charges.

Expediency. Let's get it over with. "They'll drop the charges if I do the community service and attend anger management? Where do I sign?"

Also, he may not have unclean hands. I'm guessing he did some bad stuff, even if he was goaded into it or defending himself.

These things are rarely as black and white as we'd like them to be. There may be degrees or percentages of culpability that we'll never know, that not even the prosecutor can fully know.

And yes, it is a conditional dropping of the charges. If you're looking for a sign of what the Fulton County DA thinks of their case, how about a reduction from felony domestic violence to a pretrial diversion with dismissal when completed?

Holy overcharge, Batman!

[GovClintonTyree]

I said "basically" as in the way the league probably views it... not necessarily what it means in reality. Considering the league has penalized players severely when charges weren't even filed in the first place, I'm not so sure my take is wrong.

Yeah, I hope the union vigorously defends against that. He's basically lost a year of his career. That's enough, IMO.

[GovClintonTyree]

I always found shielding my face with one of our kids slowed her down. had to make sure it was one she liked or it proved to just provoke her more.

Outstanding. Not just a human shield, but one she's invested in.

[McCann'sCans]

DOB reporting that Ozuna's administrative leave has officially begun. The investigation continues. Saw that Bauer's leave extends through the rest of the season now as well.

#Braves outfielder Marcell Ozuna has been placed on administrative leave for seven days under the Joint MLB-MLBPA Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy, an MLB official told @TheAthletic. The administrative leave can be extended. MLB's investigation is ongoing.

[Hudson2]

Since a resolution is in sight for Ozuna in his case it should be over pretty quick I’d think. Bauer has a ton to go through to even to begin to see the end.