Sometimes sports headlines read like normal news, other times they read like an episode of reality TV that accidentally wandered into a police report. This week’s entry into the “what on earth happened here?” category involves James Pearce Jr. and WNBA star Rickea Jackson.
And let’s just say it’s not pretty.
Pearce Jr., the pass rusher who made a name for himself terrorizing quarterbacks, is now dealing with a different kind of pressure: legal pressure. Authorities have reportedly charged him with three felonies after an alleged incident involving his ex-girlfriend Jackson. Yes, three.
The charges include aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, fleeing and eluding police, and resisting an officer with violence.
There was also a fourth charge of felony aggravated stalking. But that one was later downgraded to a misdemeanor. So… small victories? Maybe?
Pearce allegedly followed the car of Jackson, his ex-girlfriend, and repeatedly used his vehicle to collide with hers as she attempted to reach the Doral (Florida) police station.
After being confronted by a police officer, Pearce allegedly fled in his vehicle and took police on a chase before crashing at an intersection. He fled the vehicle on foot before being subdued by officers and then allegedly resisted arrest.
Pearce was arrested and spent a night in a county correctional center before paying a $20,500 bond and being released Feb. 8.
Rickea Jackson wasn’t joking with that incident and now, I guess she’s at rest and peace with herself.
Jackson, who plays for the Los Angeles Sparks, filed an injunction for a protective order against Pearce in Miami-Dade County on Feb. 9. In her petition, Jackson wrote that she was in fear for her life and that if the court did not intervene then “James will kill me.”
She wrote that Pearce “verbally and physically abused me on more than one occasion” and threatened to kill, harm and injure her and to place a bag over her head, according to the court filing.
The court granted her initial request for protection, and a permanent injunction hearing is set for April 21. Pearce is under order not to have contact with Jackson or come within 500 feet of her home or place of employment or 100 feet from her vehicle.
Pearce’s legal team told ESPN on Thursday in an email that it stands by its original statement in which, after his arrest, they said Pearce “maintains his innocence and urges the public to understand that while allegations have the power to shape a narrative, that it is hardly the full, complete story.”
For Pearce Jr., the next chapter will likely play out in courtrooms instead of stadiums. Lawyers will talk, evidence will be reviewed and the legal system will do what it does.
Until then, one lesson stands out from the whole mess: being good at football is great, but staying out of police reports is even better.
