Thabo Sefolosha finally had his day in court over his incident with the NYPD, and he has emerged decisively victorious. A New York City jury found him not guilty on all charges on Friday. He was on trial for obstructing government administration, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
Sefolosha had reportedly been offered a plea deal which would have required only one day of community service as punishment, but he was determined to publicly fight his charges, and the decision has paid off.
Sefolosha has been so critical of the NYPD’s treatment of him that many are wondering if he’ll now pursue a civil suit against them for breaking his leg. He hasn’t said anything yet, and with the NBA season getting ready to start, he might prefer to wait a while before diving back into legal proceedings. Then again, that’s why he has lawyers.
It takes guts to go to trial to clear your name when such a sweetheart plea deal is on the table, no matter how strongly you believe in your innocence. But that’s exactly what Thabo has, along with a strong sense of justice:
Sefolosha's agent says his client's thrilled: "we rejected two plea deals b/c it was very important for him to get complete vindication."
— David Aldridge (@davidaldridgedc) October 9, 2015
Sefolosha is still making his way back from that broken leg, but he should be ready for the start of the season. It will be a relief for him and the Hawks to get back to basketball.
(Via ESPN)
