Former NBA player Sindarius Thornwell, best known for his stint with the Los Angeles Clippers and his collegiate heroics at South Carolina, was arrested on September 2nd in Richland County, South Carolina, on charges of second-degree domestic violence and unlawful conduct toward a child.
According to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, the arrest stems from an incident that occurred on August 12th at approximately 8:30 p.m. Deputies responded to a domestic violence call at a residence on Glenn Village Circle. The victim reported that Thornwell assaulted her during a verbal argument while she was holding their young child.
She told investigators that Thornwell threw a cup of water at her and struck her in the back of the head. Thornwell denied hitting her but admitted to throwing the water. Deputies corroborated the victim’s account with additional evidence, leading to the issuance of an arrest warrant.
Thornwell was taken into custody and booked at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. He was granted a $25,000 personal recognizance bond later that day. His attorney, Seth Rose, stated:
“We are asserting Sindarius’s innocence to these accusations and ask everyone to withhold judgment until this is resolved in a court of law”.
Thornwell is scheduled to appear in court again on November 21st. If convicted, he faces up to three years in prison and a $5,000 fine for the domestic violence charge, and up to ten years for the felony charge of unlawful conduct toward a child.
Thornwell, 30, rose to prominence as the SEC Player of the Year in 2017, leading the South Carolina Gamecocks to their first-ever Final Four appearance. He was drafted 48th overall by the Milwaukee Bucks and traded to the Clippers, where he played the majority of his 160 NBA games. Most recently, he played overseas for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers in China.
