Kyrgios has assault charge dismissed
AUSTRALIAN tennis star Nick Kyrgios has issued an apology after having his assault charge dismissed despite admitting to shoving his ex-girlfriend during a night out.
The world no. 20 fronted the ACT Magistrates Court on Friday where he was spared a conviction after pleading guilty to common assault during an argument with Chiara Passari more than two years ago.
After speaking only a few words to the reporters who swamped him as he got into a car outside the court, Kyrgios (pictured) issued a statement thanking the court and saying he was “sincerely sorry” for the hurt he had caused.
“I was not in a good place when this took place and I reacted to a difficult situation in a way I deeply regret,” he said.
Kyrgios, who recently underwent surgery after pulling out of the Australian Open on the first day of the tournament because of a tear to his knee cartilage, arrived at the court on crutches with his family and his current partner, Costeen Hatzi.
Magistrate Beth Campbell rejected Kyrgios’s bid to have his assault charge thrown out on mental health grounds but ultimately dismissed his case, saying it didn’t warrant a conviction.
The court heard a victim impact statement from Ms Passari which her lawyer read on her behalf, in which she said she felt “scared to be alone” after the assault and that the “trust and safety I felt with Nick no longer existed”.
The court heard Kyrgios shoved Ms Passari to the ground during a loud verbal argument outside a unit complex in the Canberra suburb of Kingston on the night of January 10, 2021.
Ms Passari and Kyrgios met at a cafe a day later to discuss what had happened. During their conversation, which Ms Passari recorded without Kyrgios’s knowledge, he said he was remorseful for his actions.