Editor’s Note:
First things first, it is important to know that this is my best attempt at a truly unbiased opinion regarding the events and circumstances surrounding Demarcus Cousins and his recent domestic abuse allegations. But, knowing my association with the University of Kentucky, and love for all things UK athletics, I know that no matter how “unbiased” I am, this opinion will always be tainted. I have grown up praising the feet that UK athletes walk on, right or wrong, that is just how it is here in Lexington, KY. Our college sports are our professional sports and the SEC mantra, “It Means More,” applies here for sure.
The Cousins Backstory:
In our Podcast episode 42, “Deja Vu: Add Boogie to the List,” covering this topic, we avoided Boogie’s biographical information and previous sports accolades. That is because we wanted to avoid using them as a sort-of justification for his actions or take away for the severity of the alleged abuse at hand. But for the sake of telling the whole story here, we will consider everything.
Demarcus Cousins was born in Birmingham, Alabama, on August 13, 1991, but moved to Mobile, Alabama and attended high school at LeFlore Magnet High School, where he played his high school basketball. In his senior season he averaged 24 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks a game. In 2009 he was named to the McDonald’s All-American Boys Game where he had 14 points and 8 rebounds. Heading to college he originally committed to Memphis but followed John Calipari to my beloved Kentucky Wildcats. In college he averaged an impressive 15 pints and almost 10 rebounds a game, very impressive numbers as the Calipari system usually does not allow for such production. Cousins was ultimately named SEC Freshman of the Year and was also named First Team ALL-SEC and AP First Team. After his productive college career, he followed the path of the one-and-done and was the 5th overall pick to the Sacramento Kings.
Professionally, Cousins had an up-and-down career, both in terms of his production and his antics. He signed-up to be a part of, what would have been, another super team. But injuries derailed that much like it derailed his career with the LA Lakers as he tore his ACL. Cousins frequently put up gaudy numbers, but his attitude frequently cost in terms of suspensions, fines, and technical free-throws. But, even with all his “antics” on the court, nothing would have ever indicated that DMC was involved in the sort-of conduct that is being alleged. But then again, there rarely is any indication. That is the problem.
What happened?
On Monday, August 26, 2019 TMZ released an audio recording where Cousins allegedly (we say allegedly because at the time of the story releasing there was NOT confirmation on if it was actually Cousin’s voice on the other side of the phone) told his EX and Mother of his 7 year old son that he was going to “put a bullet in your (EXPLETIVE) head.”
According to multiple reports, Demarcus Cousins was discussing whether his son was going to be attending his wedding in Atlanta over the weekend. That is when, allegedly, his ex-girlfriend and mother of his child, Christy West stated that the son would not be attending. For whatever reason, that is when Cousins made the disturbing threat. For a while there seemed to be some question about the recording’s authenticity in the media and whether it was in fact, Cousins. However, doubt ceased to exist when the Mobile Police issued an arrest warrant for Cousins on August 29, 2019. Cousins is currently charged with Domestic Violence: 3rd Degree Harassing Communications. As of now, that is the only charge pending for cousins. But there are rumors swirling about further abuse that occurred in the form of additional threats and choking. This was apparently contained in court docs and a police report obtained by TMZ. It is because of this further abuse that West is supposedly seeking a restraining order against Cousins. But there could be further charges and ramifications if the additional allegations hold to be true. It is at this time that I want to state that these allegations against Cousins are legit. Whether true or not, I do not know and will likely never know. If that is Cousins voice on the phone, then, he is at minimum, guilty of saying something very stupid and should be held accountable for such threats. The problem is however that such threats are sometimes part of pattern of domestic abuse. A pattern, that must be stopped and must be eliminated from our society.
Why did this happen?
This is where it gets difficult for me. Simply put I WAS a fan of Cousins and have been a fan of University of Kentucky Basketball and all their players since I could understand what a basketball was. That is why I put a disclaimer that no matter how unbiased I am trying to sound; I am still biased. Deep down I want this to be totally false and I wanted initially to blame the victim. Yeah, pretty terrible. But that is what happens with athletes all too often. We remember the euphoria they have given us as a way to justify re-signing them, justify them not getting suspended, or justify their actions in general. That is why my very first reaction to this, and the reaction many fans had, was “Well, why is she keeping his son from him?” One comment I saw on social media was, roughly, “If I couldn’t see my son, I would say the same!”
All of this misses the point. Yes, if the mother of his child is keeping his son from him, wrongfully, then she is in the wrong in that right. Again, that does not dismiss the fact that he made the choice to react the way he did and say the things that he said. That is the problem. It will never be okay to threaten to “put an (EXPLETIVE) bullet” in the head of your former lover, NEVER. I even found myself trying to look up domestic violence in his birthplace of Birmingham, Alabama and where he went to high school in Mobile, Alabama trying to find possible reasons and justifications for his conduct. But it really doesn’t matter. Yes, if he grew up in a home or a place where he saw abuse, or it was normalized, he may be more likely to abuse, but it also cuts the other direction. Many people, who are affected by abuse, refuse to do that to their own lovers down the line. So, really, the why is irrelevant. Either way, he should have never said what he said, and if the additional allegations are true, he should have never put his hands on her.
What does this mean for Boogie?
Criminally:
At the end of the day Cousins is an athlete. And as much as I hate to say it, what he receives will most likely be impacted by fame and notoriety. Now, of course, we always say this, but we are not casting innocence or guilt, ever. Merely laying the facts out as we see them and then giving an opinion as to what may happen to Cousins. (See Tyreke Hill, someone I was an avid proponent of him being banned from the league, may have been somewhat exonerated by a new recording released recently showing that he may have never hurt his wife back at OK State or hurt his child).
But according to Alabama’s Criminal Code 1975 S 13A-11-8: A person commits the crime of harassing communications if, with intent to harass, that person does a number of different things. What is relevant here is the language, (NOT VERBATIM) “Communicates with a person, anonymously or otherwise, by telephone, telegraph, mail or any other form of written electronic communication, in a manner likely to harass OR CAUSE ALARM.” As you can tell, Boogie’s actions fit squarely within the definition of their statute, especially the “cause alarm” wording. In Alabama such conduct constitutes a Class C misdemeanor which is punishable by a term of imprisonment “not more than” three months according to the 2004 Tompkins v. State opinion in Alabama’s Criminal Appellate Court. Now, if the additional allegations that have been thrown out there by TMZ are true, Cousins could be looking at very significant ramifications. For instance, these allegations could easily range from Domestic Violence in the Third-First Degrees. The sentencing and possible jail-time associated with these crimes are much more severe and range from a MINIMUM 30 days incarceration to a MINIMUM of a year incarceration. Did you catch the significant part? He goes from probably no jail time to have a mandated MINIMUM of jail time. So, if anyone did not know, this is a very serious situation he has himself in.
Professionally:
Now when considering what will happen professionally, most of it will depend upon what happens in the criminal courts. That does not mean that his conduct has not already been deemed “conduct unbecoming” of a player in the NBA. Additionally, it is also hard to guess because of Boogie’s current situation medically. He just tore his ACL so any fines, suspensions, or bans (however unlikely) may come swiftly or may only come if he is ever on a team again.
But ultimately, it depends on what Adam Silver thinks. Effective July 2017, the NBA, the NBA and NBPA have negotiated a joint policy on DV, Sexual Assault and child abuse. The policy defines “domestic violence” to encompass many kinds of actual violence and threatened violence, including “any actual or attempted violent act that is committed by one party in an intimate or family relationship against another party in that relationship. Such an act may include physical assault or battery, sexual assault, stalking, harassment, or other forms of physical or psychological abuse. It may also include behavior that intimidates, manipulates, humiliates, isolates, frightens, terrorizes, coerces, threatens, injures, or places another person in fear of bodily harm.” The policy charges a policy committee with powers of creating a treatment and accountability plan for a player implicated in DV.
The committee consists of two people from NBA, two from NBPA, and three independent experts with expertise in Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault or Child abuse. These people will ultimately decide a “treatment plan” of sorts for Cousins, but in terms of suspensions or bans that again is up to Silver. This is much like the NFL policy but without a set amount of games to start with (For a breakdown of the NFL’s policy, See https://scholarsofthegame.com/?p=390). Silver looks at what happens and weighs the mitigating and aggravating factors and decides what punishment would be best. That can vary in terms of fines, suspensions, or even bans if he saw fit.
But it is important to note that in 2017 Willie Reed Was arrested for allegedly twisting his wife’s arm and grabbing her by the hair and knocking her to the ground stemming from an argument about her wanting a divorce from Reed. Because his voluntary participation in counseling and some other factors he only got a 6-game suspension. For a league we have often raved about trying to do the “right thing.” this decision is still interesting, and worthy of noting, when considering the star power of Cousins. But the ultimate decision-make may be the court of public opinion.
The fact of the matter is, in the court of public opinion, you are not innocent until proven guilty, you are guilty until proven innocent. IT IS A FACT. I mentioned Tyreke Hill, and although we do not know for sure how really innocent or guilty, he is, I BASHED HIM for his alleged involvement with domestic violence. However right or wrong they may have been. That is the kind of extreme reactions that we so often have the court of public opinion. Now, what I am getting at here is that the news cycle tends to have a major effect on these things and the outcry from fans and the media WILL dictate action by the league and how public they go with it. Ultimately, I imagine that Silver will do “something.” I put it in air quotes because I am not sure what that “something” will be. The facts alleged with Boogie, as TMZ has reported, seem more severe than that of Willie Reed (NOTE: I am not saying what Willie Reed is not bad, just comparing for the sake of punishment). But what the League will ultimately decide, is a guess I do not have.
What SHOULD it mean for Boogie?
When looking at what should happen, it completely depends on guilt. IF Cousins is in fact guilty of the underlying allegations, he should at minimum be suspended. How long that suspension is another story that will vary depending on the facts shown to be true (threats, physical abuse, etc.). But ultimately the issue with the NBA’s policy much like the NFL’s is that there is SO much wiggle room for mitigating and aggravating factors. Yes, these things are important in a court of law and in most circumstances. But if you are shown to have done these acts, they SHOULD NOT go easy on you for cooperating like the NBA did for Willie Reed. You should be punished, and you should be MORE THAN WILLING to do what you need to rehabilitate yourself. It is that simple.
Ultimately the point I am making here, is this relates back to my previous paper addressing Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault in the NFL. Like the NFL the NBA needs to adopt a harsh, steadfast rule to work as a deterrent to this, epidemic (although it has been shown it has always been happening just has more coverage now) we seem to be having of athletes abusing their partners in varying ways, emotionally and physically. A 6-game suspension for something of Willie Reeds nature hardly seems JUST no matter how cooperative he was. If guilty, Cousins should, at least, receive a season long suspension. ALL 82 GAMES! But that can only be served once healthy and available to be on a roster. I say that in consideration of all the allegations and if they were true. If the additional facts of alleged abuse are not true, then, my opinion may change. But the NBA did get one part right and that is the “treatment plan” because nothing will ever really change if we are not addressing potential mental health issues and the like that cause such violent conduct. It is time to really deter these outrageous acts in an effective and meaningful way. These issues should mean more than fame.
Sources:
- http://www.demarcuscousins.com/bio/
- https://www.si.com/nba/2019/08/29/demarcus-cousins-arrest-warrent-domestic-violence-charge
- https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/lakers/2019/08/29/demarcus-cousins-arrest-warrant-issued-domestic-violence-charge/2153548001/
- Ala.Code 1975 § 13A-11-8
- § 13a–6–130 Domestic Violence — First Degree.
- § 13a–6–131. Domestic Violence — Second Degree.
- § 13a–6–132. Domestic Violence — Third Degree.
- https://www.si.com/nba/2018/09/13/jabari-bird-celtics-domestic-violence-assault-charges-arrest
- https://scholarsofthegame.com/?p=390
