Former NFL wide receiver Antonio Brown filed a motion seeking the dismissal of an attempted murder charge, where a conviction can land him up to 30 years in prison.
Brown, 37, pleaded not guilty to a second-degree attempted murder charge last month, after he was arrested and extradited from Dubai, where he had been since being accused of shooting at a man during a celebrity boxing match in Miami on May 16.
According to documents obtained by USA TODAY Sports and filed this week in Miami-Dade County Circuit Court, Brown’s lawyers filed a motion to have the case thrown out, claiming that the shooting was legal under a 2005 Florida state statute referred to as the ‘Stand Your Ground’ law.
The law says ‘a person is justified in using or threatening to use force, except deadly force, against another when and to the extent that the person reasonably believes that such conduct is necessary to defend himself or herself or another against the other’s imminent use of unlawful force.’
In an arrest affidavit, authorities have said that Brown grabbed a handgun from a person working security after the match and fired two shots at him.
Brown’s attorney said the affidavit is wrong, and that the four-time First Team All-Pro selection used his own weapon, and he wasn’t aiming at anyone.
The alleged victim, Zul-Qarnain Kwame Nantambu, said that one of those bullets grazed his neck, and in the new motion, the two have a history that dates back several years.
It states that in 2022, Nantambu spent 30 days in Dubai for stealing Brown’s jewelry, and in December 2023, Nantambu attacked Brown while he was backstage at the Rolling Loud music festival with some of his children.
After being released on a $25,000 bond, Brown was ordered to stay away from Nantambu and given a GPS ankle monitor, and his lawyers say the circumstances in the case meant his client had every ‘legal right to defend himself,’ and was justified as he believed the alleged victim ‘intended to cause him serious harm.’
A report status in the case is set for December 22.
