AP Photo/Evan Agostini
Chad Johnson was arrested Saturday after his new wife, star of the world’s most horrific reality television show Basketball Wives, Evelyn Lozada accused him of head-butting her during an argument.
Yahoo! Sports explains:
Johnson – who recently changed his name from Chad Ochocinco – was arrested Saturday after Lozada confronted him about a receipt she found for a box of condoms, police said. According to an arrest affidavit, Lozada said she was taking groceries into their home when she found the receipt in the car trunk.
When the two were seated back in the car, they began talking about the receipt and their marriage. That’s when Johnson got upset and head-butted his wife, the report said.
Lozada ran to a neighbor’s house and called police. A responding officer said Lozada had a 3-inch cut on her forehead, according to the affidavit, while Johnson did not have any visible marks or bruises. When questioned by police, he confirmed there was an argument over the receipt, but said his wife had head-butted him.
After a disappointing 2011 with the Patriots, Johnson had a lot to prove on the Dolphins. The article on Yahoo! claims that Johnson is such a big personality that he tends to annoy both his teammates and his coaches. Coach Joe Philbin said:
”I reminded them that on April 10 in our first team meetings, I said, ‘Guys, I’d love to stand up here and tell you we’re never going to have a problem here in Miami,”’ Philbin said. ”Do we want high-character guys? Yes. All 31 other coaches are going to say the same thing. But I specifically told them on April 10 that there will be problems that arise and you have to deal with them honestly and openly and directly. You’ve got to learn from mistakes and move on, and you can’t hide from the problem.”
Us Magazine reports that VH1 has also cancelled plans for a show featuring Johnson and Lozada called Ev & Ocho.
“Due to the unfortunate events over the past weekend and the seriousness of the allegations, VH1 is pulling the series ‘Ev & Ocho’ from its schedule and has no current plans of airing it,” a network spokesperson tells Us Weekly.
What do you think of the hits to Johnson’s career as a result of this charge?
How does the fallout from this arrest compare to other cases of professional athletes who’ve been accused of or arrested for crimes, such as Kobe Bryant or Michael Vick?
About Joanna Schroeder
God, I really love Evelyn too. Sad to know she won’t have a new show (aside from a new season of Basketball Wives). But rightfully so, DV is no joke.
Thanks for the article, Joanna.
I appreciate the very precise language in this article that quite clearly states that he has been charged according to what his wife has told police, and I appreciate the fact that the article gives his explanation of what happened. He is innocent until proven guilty. It would have been really easy to write this up saying “Ochocinco was cut for being a wife-beater” or to jump the conclusion that he’s guilty.
Yeah, I mean, DV is no joke. I’m with Kaleb. However, I am curious what the rest of this story is because it’s sort of staggering to imagine that the accusation and arrest should be enough for the loss of both jobs…
I mean, Kobe Bryant was accused of a violent rape, with some degree of physical evidence, but always kept his job as a Laker… right?
It seem to me that unless there is something we don’t know from the Dolphins (it does sound like the coach at least anticipated trouble, if he had not already experienced some from Johnson), these actions might set a dangerous precedent. I would have been more comfortable with the Dolphins waiting until a conviction was handed down to fire him.
VH1 is a bit of a different story. The show wasn’t in production, and they need to weigh their costs. The show is dependent upon viewership, and the network probably didn’t want to deal with protests. Also, the cancellation equally hurts both parties, not just Johnson. Obviously they can’t film a show about them being together if there’s a restraining order!
There certainly must’ve been physical evidence to show that he was the head-butter and not her. I am IN NO WAY trying to diminish her experience or say she’s lying, but that is why we have the courts system, to assume innocence until proven guilty.
I say give her the protective order, give him one if he wants it, and keep the two away from one another. But don’t presume his guilt until it’s been ruled so.
Tough one.
I mean, Kobe Bryant was accused of a violent rape, with some degree of physical evidence, but always kept his job as a Laker… right?
But it’s not like that is the norm for men. MAYBE famous men, but not men in general. Contrary to the folks that swear by all that is holy that accusations (false or not) don’t do harm they actually do. Chad’s nowhere near a conviction but he got fire? That’s a bit extreme to me. Are we in that much of a rush that we can’t even wait for a conviction?
I’d wager the Dolphins did this to protect their image but to me (unless like you say there are some details not being told) this makes them look worse. It tells me that Dolphin management doesn’t back it’s players. And no that doesn’t mean just declaring them innocent as they know they are getting away with crimes. It means that until at least some solid evindence that shows guilt comes along they should be willing to support their players. Kinda odd isn’t it?
At this point I’m really hoping there is something other than the allegations that got him cut.