MORNING ROUNDUP
Celtics’ Jabari Bird taking a break after violence charges
Boston Celtics guard Jabari Bird said he's taking a break from the team following charges that he choked and kicked his girlfriend and prevented her from leaving his apartment.
In a statement Thursday, the 24-year-old Bird apologized to his teammates and fans for creating an "unnecessary distraction" and said he's taking time away to deal with "legal and medical issues."
"I do not condone violence against women," he said. "I am hopeful that in due time and process, I will be able to regain everyone's trust."
A management agency that represents Bird released the statement just hours after an arraignment hearing in which Bird was held on $50,000 bail. Not-guilty pleas to domestic violence-related charges were entered on his behalf.
Police spoke with Bird's girlfriend, a student at a local college, at a city hospital after his arrest , prosecutor Khyati Short said during the hearing.
Bird choked the woman unconscious, threw her against the wall and dragged her by the ankles when she tried to leave his apartment in the Brighton neighborhood, police said.
Hockey player suspended for domestic abuse
Nashville Predators forward Austin Watson has been suspended without pay for the entire preseason and first 27 games of the regular season for domestic abuse.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman handed down the suspension Wednesday after an investigation and a hearing with Watson last week. Watson pleaded no contest in July to a charge of domestic assault stemming from an incident in June, and the NHL found Watson engaged in unacceptable off-ice conduct. The NHL does not have a written domestic abuse policy and has chosen to judge each incident separately.
Police officer fired after mocking NBA player’s arrest
A Milwaukee officer involved in the stun gun arrest of Bucks' player Sterling Brown has been fired because of social media posts mocking the incident, the city's police chief said Thursday.
Police Chief Alfonso Morales said the firing decision was not tied to anything Erik Andrade did when Brown was arrested, but explained that the social media posts compromised the officer's ability to testify in other cases.
Brown sued the police department in June and accused officers of using excessive force and targeting him because he's black. A group of officers swarmed on him at a Walgreens parking lot because he didn't immediately remove his hands from his pockets. Andrade later mocked Brown on Facebook for his arrest and also posted a racist meme of Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant.
Stars lock up star for eight years
Tyler Seguin showed up in Dallas five years ago mired in a Twitter-fed mess and vowing to show fans he could be one of the faces of the only NHL franchise in Texas.
The high-scoring forward has nearly 80 million ways to prove he pulled it off.
The Stars avoided any lingering questions about the future of Seguin by signing the five-time All-Star center to a $78.8 million, eight-year contract extension that goes through the 2026-27 season.