ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) Darrell Armstrong's battery trial began Monday with his attorney admitting the Hornets guard struck an officer, but he said it was an accident.
Defense attorney Zachary Stoumbos said during opening statements that Armstrong was unsure who touched him and reacted by swinging his left arm back, knocking Officer Teresa Joyce momentarily off balance.
``It was a startled response when you're unexpectedly touched,'' Stoumbos said.
But Joyce testified that Armstrong ``reacted very violently'' when she tried to remove him from the street outside a nightclub early July 7.
Armstrong, who played nine seasons with the Orlando Magic before signing with New Orleans during the offseason, is charged with felony battery on an officer and misdemeanor resisting arrest without violence. If convicted, he faces probation to five years in prison.
Joyce said Armstrong stepped into the street outside the nightclub to talk to two women in a taxicab, posing a safety hazard.
``I screamed at him to get out of the road,'' Joyce said.
The officer said she gave him two more warnings. Then, she walked to his left side, placed her hand on his back and applied pressure to get him to move to the sidewalk. He knocked her hand away.
Joyce, not knowing who Armstrong was, said she feared for her safety and decided to arrest him. She said she tried to grab his arm but he jerked it away.
``What are you messing with me for?'' Armstrong asked the officers, prosecutor Mark Graham said.
During the struggle, Joyce said she sprained her ring finger.
But Armstrong's attorney said the basketball player wasn't posing a safety hazard since there were no cars behind the cab. He also disputed Joyce's account that Armstrong resisted arrest.
Stoumbos also questioned the officer's motive for pursuing the criminal case, asking her whether she planned to file a civil lawsuit.
``Isn't that what this is all about?'' he asked.
Joyce said she hadn't made a decision on whether to sue and denied that it played any role in her decision.