Packers' Josh Jacobs charged with battery, due in court Thursday
Packers' Josh Jacobs charged with battery, due in court Thursday
Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs will make his initial appearance in Brown County court Thursday at 11 a.m.
GREEN BAY, Wis. - Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs will make his initial appearance in Brown County court Thursday at 11 a.m.
"I think the scrutiny and the attention that could be a barrier to coming forward," Carmen Pitre, Sojourner Family Peace Center president, said.
Josh Jacobs charged
What we know:
Prosecutors charged Jacobs with battery and property damage stemming from an altercation with his girlfriend back in May.
"Rather than focus on him being a football player, how about a person who believes it was ok to do what they did – allegedly to have done," Pitre said.
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Josh Jacobs
Pitre says people should focus more on what happened and why.
"Normally the focus is on the person who has caused harm because the survivor, there is confidentiality, and we want to offer respect and dignity," Pitre said.
Prosecutors say Jacobs and his girlfriend got into an argument that ended with him throwing her to the ground – and her phone. Investigators say she did have a head injury.
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Dig deeper:
"From the outside, I think we need to remember these are incredibly private situations that would be painful for anybody to come forward with," Pitre said.
Pitre hopes the case will educate people about violence, so intervention and prevention can happen.
"If we can use this as an opportunity to create more safety – I think that is a good thing," Pitre said.
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The charges do not include domestic violence, which is what Jacobs was originally arrested on. In Wisconsin, cases can have a domestic violence modifier, which can have harsher penalties. State law says for it to be considered domestic violence, the people have to be living with or previously lived with the person, have a child in common, or are married or divorced. It is not clear if the two lived together.
Portions of this article were formatted using A.I. FOX6’s Christina Van Zelst and an editor reviewed it for accuracy and tone prior to publishing.
The Source: Information in this story was gathered from prosecutors, investigators, and Carmen Pitre.