Photo Credit: Kirby Lee/ USA TODAY Sports
On Sunday morning, Los Angeles Clippers rookie Branden Dawson was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence. The incident reportedly occurred between Dawson and his live-in girlfriend. He has been charged with felony domestic violence, according to TMZ. A felony offense usually results in the abuser spending a significant amount of time in jail or could end up losing certain rights.
While there are no specifics of Dawson’s crime, it is obvious that that incident between he and his girlfriend escalated quickly. While the LA Clippers have not released an official statement on Dawson, Clippers head coach Doc Rivers has. When asked about the incident, he gave a relatively generic answer: “It’s an awful situation…I have a daughter. So, it’s a terrible situation, but we’ll figure out what we want to do and how we want to handle it.”
The whole situation is unsettling but what Rivers said is most unsettling. He didn’t really address the incident, but instead put the focus on someone other than the victim. Instead of sharing his sympathy for the victim or supporting her, he interjected that he “had a daughter” which is pointless to the conversation. This is another example of sports completely glazing over the real issue and making it out to be less than it is.
Dawson has not played much this season. He has only appeared in three games this season and has been featured mostly in NBA D-League games during his brief career.
