Peppers has pleaded not guilty to strangulation, assault and battery charges
New England Patriots veteran safety Jabrill Peppers pleaded guilty to cocaine possession in court on Thursday as part of an Oct. 5, 2024, domestic violence incident.
Peppers, who is facing more charges, should have the charge cleared as long as he finishes a four-month probationary stint without reoffending, per the New York Post.
However, the 29-year-old, who served as a captain this past season for the Patriots, is also being accused of strangulation and assault and battery after a woman told authorities that he pushed her head up against a wall, choked her and took her clothes off before forcing her outside.
Peppers has pleaded not guilty to those charges, saying that his reported girlfriend was acting “erratic” at the time while also being intoxicated. He alleges she got angry after he declined to have unprotected sex with her.
Marc Brofsky, Peppers’ attorney, said in October that there is “videotaped evidence” which “sheds real doubt on the allegations.”
Patriots owner Robert Kraft noted the team was looking into the incident after Peppers was placed on the commissioner’s exempt list at the time. He later returned to the Patriots in December, where he remained a captain under now-former head coach Jerod Mayo.
Peppers, who hails from East Orange, New Jersey, saw jury selection for his trial begin on Thursday.
A Cleveland Browns first-round pick in 2017, Peppers played two seasons in Cleveland before being traded to the New York Giants, who play not too far from where he grew up.
Peppers was part of the infamous 2019 Odell Beckham Jr. trade to the Browns.
He played three seasons for the Giants before joining the Patriots for the 2022 season. This past season was underwhelming for the whole franchise as they finished 4-13, leading to Kraft’s decision to remove Mayo as head coach after one season.
Peppers finished the year with 40 combined tackles and one interception over six games.
