Patriots star Jabrill Peppers pleaded guilty to cocaine possession Thursday, part of the fallout from an Oct. 5 incident that left him facing assault and battery charges.
By admitting that police found what was indeed illegal drugs in his wallet when he was arrested, the former Giants guard has paved the way for the charge to be dropped if he completes a four-year probationary period. months without recurrence.
Peppers, 29, can then move on to the litany of other ugly accusations he faces in Massachusetts.
He is also charged with strangulation, assault and battery after a woman told police that Peppers pushed her head against a wall, “strangled her, took off her clothes and kicked her out.”
The East Orange, New Jersey, native has pleaded not guilty to the allegations, telling cops that the woman — believed to be his girlfriend — had acted “erratically,” had been drunk and became enraged when he had refused to have unprotected sex with her.
Peppers’ attorney, Marc Brofsky, said in October that the evidence in the case “casts real doubt on the allegations, including the videotaped evidence.”
Following the incident, Peppers was placed on the commissioner’s exempt list, but was able to return to the team in December and resumed his captaincy.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft said the team is investigating the incident and “if what’s been reported is true, he’s gone, but we want to know the facts.”
Jury selection for the trial began Thursday, but it was postponed after a water main broke at the courthouse Wednesday.
Peppers finished New England’s disappointing 4-13 campaign with six starts, one interception and 40 tackles.
The eight-year NFL veteran was selected by the Browns in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft and played two seasons in Cleveland before being traded to the Giants in the 2019 Odell Beckham deal.
He joined the Patriots as a free agent in 2022 and signed a three-year, $20 million contract before the 2024 season.
