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(AP) – Atlanta Falcons player James Pearce Jr. faces three felony charges following an incident on February 7, which authorities have described as a domestic dispute involving WNBA player and former girlfriend Rickea Jackson, as per a court filing on Thursday.
The Miami-Dade County State Attorney’s Office in Florida has charged Pearce with aggravated battery using a deadly weapon, fleeing and eluding law enforcement, and resisting an officer with violence. Additionally, he faces a misdemeanor charge of stalking.
An earlier charge of aggravated battery against an officer has been dismissed.
Representatives for both Pearce and Jackson have not yet responded to requests for comment. Pearce’s lawyer, Jacob Nunez, stated in February that his client “asserts his innocence and encourages the public to recognize that while allegations can influence perceptions, they don’t necessarily represent the full story.”
According to police reports, Jackson informed authorities that she was attempting to distance herself from Pearce and was driving towards the Doral police station for assistance when Pearce allegedly “deliberately crashed into the back of her vehicle with his SUV” just before officers arrived on the scene.
Pearce allegedly refused an initial order from police to “get on the floor,” according to details of the arrest in an affidavit. The police account said Pearce then drove away and hit a police officer’s left knee with his vehicle “intentionally in an attempt to evade arrest.”
According to police, Pearce wrecked his vehicle and then continued in his attempt to elude police by running before being apprehended following a “short struggle.”
Jackson in a petition for protection against Pearce filed in February after she expressed fears for her safety that predated the incident for which he was arrested and charged.
“Due to his obsessive, insecure, violent and aggressive behavior, ending the relationship has been difficult and I am afraid for my life,” Jackson said in the petition filed in the 11th Judicial Circuit in Miami-Dade County. “James has threatened to kill me, James has threatened to harm me, James has threatened to injure me, James has threatened to place a bag over my head, and James has verbally and physically abused.”
Jackson in the petition said Pearce snatched her phone, pulled her hair and took her belongings, at which point she decided to end their relationship.
She described a pattern of harassing behavior leading up to Feb. 7, including Pearce offering her $75,000 to visit him and $200,000 to remain in a relationship with him, according to the petition. Jackson said she was driving when she noticed Pearce following her in his car and she said he “began driving his vehicle erratically, at high speeds chasing after me.”
Jackson said in the petition she began driving to the Doral Police Department because she feared Pearce would hurt her. She said Pearce repeatedly struck her vehicle with his before getting to the station.
“I am in fear of my life and I believe, if this court does not assist me with this issue, James will kill me,” Jackson said, according to the documents.
Jackson, 24, is two years into her WNBA career. She said she and Pearce began dating when they were at the University of Tennessee together.
Pearce, 22, was the No. 26 pick in the NFL draft last year. He had 10 1/2 sacks and his 45 quarterback pressures set a Falcons rookie record.