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The new warrant was issued back in January, but has yet to be served.
Miles Bridges is facing another round of legal trouble with news emerging on Wednesday night that the Charlotte Hornets forward is facing an arrest warrant after allegedly breaching his domestic violence order.
The incident, which reportedly happened in January of 2023, doesn’t contain new domestic violence charges, but rather stems from an incident in which Bridges’ ex-girlfriend had the windshield of her car smashed at her residence. WSOC in Charlotte is reporting that Mecklenburg County deputies have been trying to serve the warrant on the Hornets player since that time, but were unable to locate him.
Bridges pleaded “no contest” to felony domestic violence in November. Part of the agreement, which kept Bridges out of prison, was an order to stay away from his ex for a period of 10 years, as well as subject himself to weekly drug testing and serve a three-year probationary period. It’s unclear if this latest warrant could result in Bridges facing jail time, as details of the warrant will not be public until it is served.
Bridges and his former partner have several children together, including one son who witnessed his father being violent towards his mother. This was an aggravating factor, which led to Bridges receiving the felony charge.
News of Bridges’ first arrest came shortly before free agency opened in 2022. Once a candidate for a potential max-level offer, the market for Bridges evaporated in the wake of his legal issues, with the Hornets signing him to a qualifying offer he’s yet to play on. The NBA suspended Bridges for 30 games without pay, but revised the suspension to 10 games after chalking up 20 missed games to Bridges not playing in the 2022-23 season.
Bridges was expected to be a critical piece of the Hornets this season, and have a chance for him to get his career back on track — but these charges now put that, and the Hornets in jeopardy. In response the news of Bridges’ new warrant the Hornets told WSOC they only learned of the new incident on Wednesday, and released a brief statement.
“We are aware of the reports and are in the process of gathering more information.”
This incident comes as the first significant test of the Hornets new ownership group and how they will respond to the latest warrant. It continues as part of a tumultuous week in Charlotte after 2021 first-round pick Kai Jones was waived after publicly demanding a trade.
We will have more information on this story as it emerges.