WNBA’s Griner, fiancee face charges after fight

Associated Press

GOODYEAR, ARIZ.

Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner and her fiancee, fellow WNBA player Glory Johnson, were arrested on suspicion of assault and disorderly conduct after an argument in the home they recently purchased together became physical.

The two 24-year-olds were each arrested Wednesday on counts of assault by recklessly causing physical injuries and disorderly conduct for fighting. They were booked into the Maricopa County Jail in downtown Phoenix and later released.

Agents for the players did not immediately respond to requests for comment Thursday.

Griner told police that she and Johnson had been arguing every day and got into each other’s faces Wednesday afternoon in the home they had bought two days earlier after Johnson said Griner “disrespected” her, according to a police report.

Johnson told police Griner had gotten too close, so she pushed her back to get some separation and began talking to her sister, Judy Johnson, when she was pushed in the back of the head by Griner. Glory Johnson turned around and the physical altercation began, with both fighting on the floor for 4 to 6 minutes. The entire episode lasted about 20 minutes, according to the report.

Griner had a laceration on her right wrist and a tooth mark on the middle finger of her right hand after it ended up in Johnson’s mouth, according to the police report.

Johnson, who plays for the Tulsa Shock, had a cut on her lip and Julio Trejo, a friend of Griner’s, had a cut on his neck after trying to break up the fight. All three declined medical attention.