Yankees' Aroldis Chapman Won't Be Charged in Domestic Violence Case
After months of reporting New York Yankees closer Aroldis Champan won't face criminal charges in connection with an alleged domestic dispute.
"We are all pleased that the Davie Police Department and the Office of the State Attorney took the time to fully investigate the matter and have concluded that charges were not warranted," Chapman's lawyer Paul Molle said, according to Rafael Olmeda of the Sun Sentinel.
Now, this news isn't exactly surprising. Domestic violence is hard to prove and a lot of times nothing happens as each side has their opinions and charges are dropped. Chapman admitted that he fired several gunshots in the garage following the alleged dispute but other allegations were accused..
"He was hitting me in front of everyone, and he's going crazy," the girlfriend, Cristina Barnea, told 911, according to the memo. "There's a lot of people here. I'm hiding in the bushes, the house next door."
This also doesn't mean that the entire Chapman thing is done. Yes, there won't be charges criminally for Chapman but that doesn't mean that the matter is gone with Major League Baseball.
Last year MLB collectively bargained to give Commissioner Rob Manfred the Roger Goodell power for these sort of things. Manfred has the power to punish players for conduct such as Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and Child Abuse, whether or not a conviction happens.
It will be interesting to see what happens to Chapman. Domestic violence has become a very important issue in sports over the last year or so. With the recent power given to him Manfred doesn't want to fall into the same holes that Goodell fell into.