Not enough evidence to charge Ja Morant with crime, Glendale police says. Out for next four games
After NBA star Ja Morant made local and national headlines over the past few days for a video he posted on social media involving a gun, he was sidelined by his team as police launched an investigation. But he's in the clear as far as criminal charges.
After the 23-year-old Memphis Grizzly posted that video of himself holding an apparent handgun in a Colorado nightclub, police began investigating. In a statement, the Glendale Police Department said it didn't have evidence of a crime and would not seek criminal charges.
"Through investigation, the GPD was able to determine the incident took place at Shotgun Willes, located in the City of Glendale, during the club's lawful operating hours," the statement read, in part. "In this case, it should be noted that on the night in question the GPD did not receive any calls for service at the nightclub regarding a weapon of any type. Subsequently, no disturbances were reported, and no citizens or patrons of the club came forward to make a complaint."
The video was posted on Saturday, in the early morning hours after the Grizzlies played the Nuggets in Denver Friday.
Glendale police said it launched an investigation on Monday after learning about the video.
"The investigation also concluded that no one was threatened or menaced with the firearm and in fact no firearm was ever located," the department's statement continued. "Although the video was concerning enough to prompt an investigation, there was not enough available evidence to charge anyone with a crime. Under our justice system, all persons are presumed innocent until proven otherwise."
The NBA has since launched its own investigation, the Associated Press reported. The league is trying to determine if the gun was real, if it belonged to Morant and if he brought it on the team plane. The NBA could suspend or fine him, according to the AP.
The Grizzles also announced Wednesday that Morant would be out for the next four games.
Days ago, Morant issued a statement apologizing for his actions:
"I take full responsibility for my actions last night. I'm sorry to my family, teammates, coaches, fans, partners, the city of Memphis and the entire Grizzlies organization for letting you down. I'm going to take some time away to get help and work on learning better methods of dealing with stress and my overall well-being."
