Milton Bradley guilty of abusing wife
A jury on Monday convicted former Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Milton Bradley of abusing his estranged wife.
Bradley, 35, was convicted after a four-week trial of nine misdemeanor counts, including four counts of spousal battery, one count of assault with a deadly weapon and one count of making criminal threats, Los Angeles city attorney's spokesman Frank Mateljan said. He faces up to 7-1/2 years in jail at his sentencing, which is scheduled for July 2.
Prosecutors said Bradley threatened and attacked his wife five times in 2011 and 2012. The two have been married for five years and have two children together, but are separated and in the middle of a contentious divorce.
In one incident, Bradley pushed his wife against a wall and choked her after she asked him to stop smoking marijuana in front of their children and wanted his friends to leave their home, police and prosecutors said.
''Domestic violence will not be tolerated, regardless of perceived celebrity or notoriety, and violators will be held fully accountable for their actions,'' City Attorney Carmen Trutanich said in a statement.
A phone message left after business hours for Bradley's attorney Harland Braun was not immediately returned.
Bradley played 11 years with the Dodgers, Montreal Expos, Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres, Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs and Seattle Mariners. He made one All-Star Game, as a DH in 2008.
His playing history was marred by several confrontational outbursts. The Dodgers traded him to Oakland in 2005 after he threw a water bottle at fans and had a clubhouse run-in with a reporter. During his brief term with Seattle, he was suspended for a game for bumping an umpire and ejected for arguing a called third strike.
He's been a free agent since the Mariners released him in 2011.