Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star reports:
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Just days after feeling good about making what they think is their best trade in years, the Pacers were knocked down Sunday when rookie guard Lance Stephenson was arrested and charged with third-degree assault after he allegedly pushed his girlfriend down a flight of stairs in Brooklyn, N.Y., early Sunday.
“We have been made aware of a situation involving Lance Stephenson early Sunday morning in Brooklyn,” Pacers president Larry Bird said in a statement released from the team. “We are currently in the process of gathering information and will have further comments as we learn more facts.” …
Stephenson was charged with sexual abuse for allegedly groping a girl at a bus stop near his high school in New York his senior year. The charge was dismissed and he ended up pleading to a lesser charge of disorderly conduct.
John Lauinger of the New York Daily News reports:
Stephenson, 19, a legendary player at Brooklyn’s Abraham Lincoln High School, roughed up Jasmine Williams, 21, at her Brooklyn apartment building about 5 a.m., police said.
The 6-foot-5 rookie point guard’s cowardly shove sent Williams – the mother of Stephenson’s child – tumbling headfirst down 10 steps, requiring her to be treated at a hospital for injuries to her head and neck, cops said…
He was also booked on charges of third-degree assault, harassment and menacing. Prosecutors added a charge of criminal possession of a weapon, but a spokesman could not specify what the weapon was.
