Battery Case Against Abdul-Jabbar Dismissed

A judge on Thursday dismissed misdemeanor battery and false imprisonment charges against Kareem Abdul-Jabbar because the former Laker star has complied with orders to complete 36 hours of anger management counseling.

West Los Angeles Municipal Court Commissioner Gary L. Bindman ruled that Abdul-Jabbar followed the Jan. 29 court order, which also required a $5,000 payment to a Los Angeles Police Department youth program.

Deputy City Atty. Mitchell Fox objected to the ruling, saying that with “this type of disposition . . . essentially, you’re buying your way out of a violent crime.”

Attorney Robert Shapiro appeared for Abdul-Jabbar, who was not required to be in court.

Jerry Cohen, a music editor at Universal Studios, alleged in a civil suit that the 50-year-old former Laker center slammed him against a store window and then to the ground outside a West Los Angeles yogurt shop last April. The suit alleged that Abdul-Jabbar wrapped his hands around Cohen’s neck.

In court documents, Abdul-Jabbar said he was en route to visit his dying mother when Cohen blocked traffic. Abdul-Jabbar admitted in the document that he grabbed Cohen by the back of his collar, but contended that Cohen made an obscene gesture at him. Cohen has denied the accusation, saying that he was only pointing at the parking space he wanted.