After a new video surfaced from TMZ on Saturday, the NBA is reopening its investigation into the 2021 domestic violence allegations.
Following a new video surfacing on TMZ on Saturday, the NBA is reopening an investigation into Jaxson Hayes around his 2021 domestic violence case, as reported by Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
The five-and-a-half-minute video is security footage that, according to TMZ, was obtained from a source close to Sofia Jamora, Hayes’ girlfriend at the time. In the video, Hayes can be seen dragging Jamora through a doorway while in the house and, once outside the house, pushing Jamora and spitting in her direction.
Cops responded to a domestic disturbance call at the residence that night and Hayes was tased and arrested with all of it caught on police bodycams. He would eventually plead no contest and was sentenced to three years of probation, 450 hours of community service and a year of weekly domestic violence classes.
There is still an ongoing civil suit between Hayes and Jamora.
At the time, the NBA conducted an investigation on the incident but took no further action. The release of the video on Saturday, though, prompted the league to reopen that investigation.
Via ESPN’s article:
“As a result of the media report and video posted this morning, we are reopening our investigation,” NBA spokesman Mike Bass told ESPN in a statement.
ESPN also received a comment from the Lakers that they were “cooperating with the league” on the investigation. After signing Hayes in 2023, Lakers vice president of basketball operations Rob Pelinka spoke about Hayes’ arrest and legal issues.
“I think the most important thing is we take those things very seriously and do a full vetting process,” Pelinka said. “Jaxson has been very sincere (with) his apologies around handling that and has moved beyond it to where he’s had a year or two in the NBA playing after it. It was something that we felt like he owned, took responsibility for it, and is going to be a better person on the other side of it.”
Hayes signed a two-year, $4.6 million deal with the Lakers in the 2023 offseason. He picked up his player option for the second year this summer.
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