Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges turned himself into police on Friday due to a warrant stemming from a felony domestic violence charge last November. The 25-year-old has been embroiled in legal troubles since the alleged incident took place, and questions remain about how the Hornets organization will navigate the situation during the upcoming season.
With so much surrounding Bridges over the past year-and-a-half, here is a timeline of events that can give you some background and help keep you up to date on the situation.
June 29, 2022: Bridges arrested
Following an alleged assault of his former girlfriend and the mother of his two children in front of them, Bridges was taken into custody by authorities in Los Angeles. He was later released after posting a $30,000 bond.
July 19, 2022: Bridges formally charged
Stemming from the alleged incident, Bridges was charged with one felony count of causing harm to a parent of a child and two felony counts of child abuse. He pleaded not guilty to all three charges at an arraignment the following day.
Nov. 3, 2022: Bridges receives probation
After changing his plea to no contest for the felony charge of injuring a child's parent, Bridges was sentenced to three years of probation and no jail time. The other two felony charges were dropped. Here are further details of the agreement, via ESPN's Baxter Holmes:
During his three-year probation, Bridges, 24, will be required to complete 52 weeks of domestic violence counseling and 52 weeks of parenting classes, serve 100 hours of community service and undergo weekly narcotics testing with marijuana allowed only if there is a valid doctor's prescription. He cannot own any guns, ammunition or any weapons. He also will have to pay a restitution fine of $300 (with a restitution hearing scheduled for Jan. 13) and a domestic violence fine of $500 and obey the terms of a 10-year protective order, staying 100 yards away from and having no contact with the woman. Bridges and the woman maintain custody over their two children, and any visitation or exchange of children must be done peacefully and through a neutral third party.
April 14, 2023: NBA suspends Bridges for 30 games
As a result of the charges and sentencing, the NBA issued a 30-game suspension without pay for Bridges. The league said that 20 of the games were already considered served, as Bridges had missed the entirety of the 2022-23 season. The remaining 10 will be served at the onset of the 2023-24 season.
July 7, 2023: Bridges agrees to contract
Bridges signed a $7.9 million qualifying offer to remain with the Hornets. The contract will expire at the conclusion of the 2023-24 season, making him an unrestricted free agent in the offseason.
Oct. 11, 2023: Criminal summons issued
A criminal summons was issued for Bridges for an alleged violation of the protective order stemming from his sentencing last November, according to Mecklenburg County court records. Bridges is also charged with child abuse and injury to personal property, as he allegedly threatened his former girlfriend and damaged her car while their children were in the car. Bridges allegedly threw pool balls at the car, smashing the windshield and denting the windows. His current girlfriend allegedly kicked the car.
Bridges is also accused of telling his former girlfriend that, if she told the police about the incident, he would withhold child support money. More detailed information can be found here.
Oct. 13, 2023: Bridges surrenders
After an arrest warrant was issued for a separate alleged violation of the protective order stemming from his sentencing last November, Bridges turned himself in, appeared before a judge in Lincoln County, a suburb of Charlotte, and was released on a bond of $1,000, according to Larry Seagle, the public information officer for the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office, via the Associated Press. The Charlotte Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office issued the warrant in January, but it had not been served before Bridges turned himself in.
More detailed information can be found here.