CINCINNATI, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- Adam "Pacman" Jones acted in self-defense when he punched a woman in a bar, a judge said in finding the Cincinnati Bengals cornerback not guilty of assault.
Visiting Hamilton County Municipal Court Judge Robert Taylor noted the woman, Shannon Wesley, had held a beer bottle close to the football player's eye when she poured its contents on his head at a downtown Cincinnati bar June 5, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported. Jones responded by punching her in the head, knocking her to the floor.
"The initial aggressor in this case was Shannon Wesley with the beer bottle," Taylor said. The punch "wasn't an action. It was a reaction."
Wesley, 34, allegedly had poured the beer on Jones, 30, after he had made rude comments to other women in her group.
"What we have here is all people, including [Jones], lacking in civility," the judge said.
Assistant Cincinnati Prosecutor Bernadette Longano said it was "preposterous" Jones maintained he was threatened by Wesley.
"Every Sunday he takes on 300-pounders," Longano said. "He's in a gladiator sport."
Jones' attorney called no witnesses and presented no evidence during the two-day trial.
Jones had no comment after the verdict, the newspaper said.
The football player has had a string of run-ins with the law, including two others involving women. He allegedly assaulted a dancer at a Las Vegas strip club that triggered a melee and shooting in 2007, and was accused of hitting a woman at a strip club in Atlanta in 2008. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in the first case and the woman withdrew her complaint in the second.
Jones drew a long suspension from the NFL for his role in the Las Vegas incident.
