Ben Gordon, the former NBA guard who faced legal issues following a disturbance at a Connecticut juice shop last year, has been granted a chance to have the charges expunged from his record through a probation program sanctioned by a judge on Monday.
Under the terms of the supervised program, which extends until September 2025, Gordon will have the opportunity to have weapons and threatening charges removed from his record if he complies with the conditions and refrains from any further criminal activity during the 18-month probation period.
Born in England and raised in Mount Vernon, New York, Gordon, renowned for his role in leading UConn to the NCAA national championship in 2004, encountered legal trouble in April 2023. His arrest occurred on his 40th birthday, shortly after UConn secured its fifth NCAA men’s basketball championship, at the Juice Kings shop in Stamford.
RELATED: Disturbing Details of NBA Guard Bryn Forbes’ Arrest Emerge
According to reports from several 911 callers, Gordon exhibited aggressive and peculiar behavior. Police intervened when Gordon persisted in erratic conduct upon their arrival, eventually restraining and handcuffing him outside the store.
Law enforcement officials discovered a folding knife attached to Gordon’s pocket, along with a stun gun and brass knuckles in his backpack.
In his defense, Gordon’s lawyer, Darnell Crosland, highlighted his client’s mental health struggles but emphasized his improvement. Crosland explained that Gordon became agitated at the juice shop when his bank card was declined, despite having sufficient funds in his account. He attributed Gordon’s outburst to a combination of factors, including a specialized diet he was following.
“Today we’re very happy to learn that this disposition paved the way for these charges to be dismissed,” Crosland said in a phone interview Monday. “He was ecstatic because there are so many things that he is considering doing, such as finishing his degree at UConn.”
The third overall pick in the 2004 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls, Gordon played 11 seasons in the NBA.
As a rookie for the Bulls, he won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award.
After five seasons in Chicago, he went on to play for the Detroit Pistons, Charlotte Bobcats, and Orlando Magic.
