Former Laker J.R. Smith arrested on suspicion of family violence assault charge
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- Former Laker J.R. Smith was arrested Tuesday in Texas on suspicion of assault causing bodily injury involving a family member; no bond had been set.
- Royse City police stopped Smith on Interstate 30 after an automatic license plate alert flagged an outstanding warrant.
- Smith won NBA championships with Cleveland and the Lakers.
Two-time NBA champion J.R. Smith has been arrested in Texas on family violence charges.
The former Laker is being held on suspicion of family violence assault causing bodily injury, with no bond currently set, according to the Hunt County jail’s booking records. The charge is usually a misdemeanor for first-time offenders.
According to a news release from Royse City police chief Kirk Aldridge, officers stopped Smith, whose full name is Earl Joseph Smith III, on Interstate 30 on Monday afternoon after receiving an automatic license plate alert about an outstanding warrant for his arrest issued by the Southlake Police Department..
The officers stopped the vehicle, identified Smith and took him into custody. He was transported to the Hunt County detention center and booked on the Southlake warrant. Smith’s car was released to his brother, who was with him at the time.
Southlake police said in a statement that the investigation is ongoing and no additional information will be released at this time.
The Lakers can’t afford for Austin Reaves to only play in 51 games like he did last season and expect to challenge the top teams in the Western Conference.
Smith played for five teams during his 16-year NBA career. He was named the league’s sixth man of the year in 2013 as a member of the New York Knicks and was a member of the LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers that won the 2016 NBA championship.
After signing with the Lakers in July 2020 while the league was shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic, Smith played sparingly after the season resumed in a bubble environment in Orlando, eventually winning another NBA championship with James as his teammate. His last NBA appearance was in Game 3 of the 2020 finals, a 115-104 Lakers loss to the Miami Heat.
In 2009, Smith was sentenced to 90 days in jail, with 60 days suspended, and 500 hours of community service for reckless driving after he caused a 2007 auto accident in Millstone, N.J., that resulted in the death of a friend who was a passenger in the vehicle.
