NBA Reopens Investigation into Jaxson Hayes Following Release of 2021 Video with Ex-Girlfriend

The NBA is reopening its investigation into Los Angeles Lakers player Jaxson Hayes following the release of a 2021 video involving him and his former girlfriend.

"As a result of the media report and video posted this morning, we are reopening our investigation," NBA spokesperson Mike Bass said in a statement to ESPN.

TMZ released the five-and-a-half-minute video early Sunday, showing surveillance footage of an altercation between Hayes and his then-girlfriend, Sofia Jamora. The video shows Hayes pushing and spitting at Jamora, and later entering her room, where a loud crash can be heard as Jamora cries out and pleads for him to stop.

Jaxson Hayes' July 2021 arrest

The video dates back to July 2021, when Hayes was playing for the New Orleans Pelicans, though the incident occurred in Los Angeles. Police were called, leading to Hayes's arrest. Initially, he faced 12 misdemeanor charges, including three counts of inflicting corporal injury to a spouse, two counts of domestic battery, one count of battery against an officer, one count of false imprisonment, three counts of vandalism, one count of aggravated trespassing, and one count of resisting arrest.

On February 24, 2022, Hayes pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges: false imprisonment and resisting an officer. The remaining 10 charges were dismissed. He received a sentence of three years' probation, 450 hours of community service, and was required to attend weekly domestic violence classes for one year.

The NBA had initially launched an investigation into Hayes following his 2021 arrest but chose not to pursue disciplinary action at that time.

Why is this coming up three years later?

The NBA has reopened its investigation following the release of the video, prompting questions about why the footage was made public now, over three years after the incident.

According to ESPN, the video surfaced as part of a new lawsuit filed by Sofia Jamora's attorneys, where she accuses Hayes of financially compensating one of the officers involved in his arrest for undisclosed reasons.

"We have already cooperated with the league in a thorough investigation, and as it reopens, we will continue to do so," a spokesperson for Hayes told ESPN on Saturday.

The Lakers also confirmed their cooperation with the NBA in this matter. Jamora's spokesperson told ESPN that as a domestic violence survivor, Jamora "welcomes" the renewed investigation into Hayes’s actions and is prepared to fully cooperate.