Jury acquits New England Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers in assault and battery trial

BOSTON — A jury acquitted New England Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers on Friday in his assault and battery trial.

Peppers finished testifying earlier Friday by denying he choked or shoved his accuser. Peppers, who first took the witness stand on Thursday, had been on trial this week on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

A woman testified Thursday that Peppers grabbed her by the neck, slammed her against the wall and pushed her down the stairs after another man called her cellphone several times while they were in bed.

Peppers said from the stand that he told police that he believed ''she was trying to do all this to mess up my career," The Boston Globe reported.

Along with the woman's testimony, prosecutors showed several videos of the incident, in which Peppers can be seen asking the naked woman to repeatedly leave his house in Braintree, Massachusetts. The woman said Peppers was filming her and taunting her, as she tried to get her belongings and depart after the alleged assault.

The police report of the October incident supports the woman's testimony. Police said she refused to go to a hospital and was treated at the home for her injuries.

''He grabbed me by the neck and slammed me against the wall,'' the woman said, at times getting emotional. ''My feet weren't touching the wall and he was holding me up against the wall.''

During cross-examination on Thursday, Marc Brofsky, the attorney for Peppers, challenged the woman's account and the extent of her injuries. He also noted the $9.5 million civil lawsuit the woman has filed against Peppers, alleging she was ''looking for money.''

Peppers missed seven games since being placed on the commissioner's exempt list on Oct. 9 following the incident.

The Patriots signed Peppers, a safety in his third season with the team, to an extension over the summer. Peppers was originally drafted by Cleveland in 2017 and spent two seasons with the Cleveland Browns before playing for the New York Giants for three seasons. His current contract with the Patriots runs through 2027.