THE Nick Kyrgios confessed to assaulting his ex-partner but avoided conviction. The 27-year-old Australian tennis player’s guilty plea in a Canberra court came after his lawyers failed to avoid a trial on mental health grounds. The world number 20 appeared on court on crutches as he recovers from an injury that kept him out of the Australian Open.
As disclosed in the hearing, the known for the peculiar behavior of the athlete pushed Chiara Passari to the pavement during an argument in Canberra in 2021. The judge called the incident “an isolated act of stupidity or irritation” when she acquitted him.
Evidence presented in court said Mr Kyrgios pushed Passari and knocked her to the ground after she stopped him from leaving by stopping his car while they were arguing on January 10, 2021. Passari reported the incident to police the following month, but he did not make a formal complaint. The couple reconciled and continued their relationship, but after they broke up, the girl proceeded to formal complaint in December 2021.
Lawyer Michael Koukoulies-Smith argued that Mr Kyrgios was trying to defuse the situation by calling an Uber and had repeatedly tried to calmly remove Passari from the car before the incident. “In this context and the resulting frustration, my client reacted, and the offense occurred“, he said. “There is a link between his mental health and the offending – although today he no longer suffers to the same degree».
Mr Kyrgios apologized the next day, indicating he accepts his responsibility to Ms Passari, his lawyer added.
In sentencing Mr Kyrgios, Judge Beth Campbell said he was “a young man trying to extricate himself from an emotionally charged situation». “You acted in the heat of the soul” he noted, and added: “I treat you the same as I would any young man in this court. You’re just a young man who happens to hit the tennis ball exceptionally well».
Finally, he told Mr. Kyrgios that reports from his family indicated that he has a lot of “love and support” around him.
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