Rick Ross Gets Domestic Violence Charge Downgraded From Felony to Misdemeanor
Billboard ·
The rapper was arrested earlier this month for allegedly striking his live-in girlfriend. Defense attorneys say he’s being “wrongfully accused.”
Rick Ross scored a legal win this week as the charge in his Florida domestic violence case was reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor.
The rapper was arrested on Oct. 1 and charged with battery by strangulation, a felony that can carry up to five years in prison. But in a Thursday (Oct. 29) court filing, obtained by Billboard , Miami prosecutors said they have “insufficient evidence” for that felony charge and will instead move forward on a downgraded misdemeanor charge of battery/domestic violence. The misdemeanor count carries a shorter maximum jail sentence of one year if convicted.
Ross has pled not guilty in the case. His attorneys did not immediately return a request for comment on the reduction on Friday (Oct. 30), but they previously told Billboard that the rapper is innocent. “He respectfully requests that his friends, fans and the general public not prejudge the situation and allow the judicial process to run its course,” said lawyers Steve Sadow and Bradley Horenstein in a statement upon his arrest.
Prosecutors allege that Ross struck his then-girlfriend, model Jazzma Kendrick, at their shared home in August. Kendrick first went public with these claims in a series of Instagram stories in late September. According to People , Kendrick shared photos of facial injuries with the caption, “The day Rick busted my lip and the day I left.”
Ross’ lawyers have strongly denied the allegations. “William Roberts II, professionally known as Rick Ross, is being wrongfully accused by an ex-girlfriend whose true motivations are unclear,” said Sadow and Horenstein in their earlier statement to Billboard . “The ex did not even file a police report until Sept. 29, a month after the claimed incident allegedly took place on Aug. 28, 2026.”
A judge released Ross on a $1,000 cash bond following his arrest. During the initial court hearing on Oct. 1, Horenstein cited Ross’ celebrity status to ask for an expedited release . But Judge Mindy Glazer was not impressed.
“Hi, Mr. Roberts,” said the judge. “I have no idea who you are except as someone here in the court who’s going to be treated fairly like everybody else here.”