A cell at the Clark County Detention Center, similar to one where boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. is serving an 87-day term. Source: LATimes.com
To be an undefeated, five-division World Champion boxer, Floyd Mayweather Jr. is definitely acting like a wimp.
Mayweather went to jail on June 1st after pleading guilty to domestic battery for beating his girlfriend, threatening her and threatening two of their three kids. He was supposed to report earlier, but the judge allowed him to delay his reporting date so he could fight on Cinco De Mayo. Now, just 12 days after going to jail, the boxer’s lawyers have asked the judge to let him serve the remainder of his jail sentence from home. Why? Well, according to FoxSports.com, Mayweather says the low-quality food and water have threatened his health and he is losing muscle tone which puts his boxing career in jeopardy.
Cry me a river.
Not surprisingly, Las Vegas Judge Melissa Saragosa denied his request.
After being taken into custody to begin his sentence in a domestic violence case, Mayweather “discovered his subjective understanding” of jail conditions “was inaccurate,” Judge Melissa Saragosa wrote in a decision Wednesday that voided a scheduled Thursday hearing on the matter. “These facts do not give rise to jurisdiction of this court to modify defendant’s sentence.”
Saragosa was told by Mayweather’s attorneys that the boxer’s plan to fight for two more years was in danger because jail deprives him of proper nutrition and exercise. In a 35-page request, the attorneys cited a doctor’s report that said Mayweather’s caloric intake was one-fifth as much as it was outside jail and that isolation effectively stops him from exercise.
Mayweather began an 87-day jail sentence on June 1 after pleading to domestic battery for a physical confrontation with the mother of his three children.
“The court finds the alleged dehydration of the defendant to be self-induced as water is made available to him 24 hours a day,” Saragosa wrote. “The court further finds the estimated intake of only 800 calories per day is also self-induced as defendant chooses not to eat the food provided.”
Saragosa added the physical training areas “may not be consistent with his prior regimen,” but, “he is indeed provided sufficient space and time for physical activity if he so chooses.”
Like the old saying goes: If you can’t do the time, then don’t do the crime. As if a man hitting his girlfriend isn’t enough, Mayweather is a professional boxer who hit his girlfriend in front of their two kids. He faced 34 years in prison and got a mere 90 days and now he is asking to serve the time at home? On what grounds? The fact that, as Fox Sports reported, he isn’t drinking enough because he isn’t allowed bottled water and doesn’t enjoy tap?
This kind of hubris is definitely not limited to Mayweather, but it is a prime example of celebrities thinking they should nearly get away with murder in the case of battering women. When Michael Vick was convicted of dogfighting, he was sentenced to 23 months in prison (I think he ended up serving 19). In comparison, Mayweather received a slap on the wrist for a more egregious crime. Then again, Pastor Creflo Dollar is still preaching on Sundays despite being accused of punching his 15-year-old daughter. How is that legal?
I definitely don’t support the lock-em-in-jail-and-throw-away-the-key justice system when it comes to black men in our country. But I also think there is a time to be held accountable for physically abusing women whether you’re Joe Blow living in Detroit, a top-selling R&B singer, the biggest pastor in Atlanta, or an undefeated pro boxer. Especially a pro boxer.
It’s sad that Mayweather is having to spend time away from his kids in order to spend time in solitary confinement, but maybe this will be a lesson to his own kids that, despite their father doing it in front of them, it’s not okay to be hit on by your boyfriend or to hit your girlfriend. Jail is not a five-star hotel, it’s punishment. Requesting to go back to your mansion in lieu of serving your time in jail is ridiculous. If Mayweather’s career is that important to him then maybe he should have saved his punches for the boxing ring instead of laying them on his girlfriend.
What do you think about Mayweather’s request to serve the rest of his sentence on house arrest?
Alissa Henry is a freelance writer living in Columbus, OH. Follow her on Twitter @AlissaInPink or check out her blog This Cannot Be My Life
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