SEATTLE -- A judge on Tuesday granted a defense request for
45-day continuance for Seattle Seahawks lineman Sean Locklear,
accused in an assault on his girlfriend, so his attorney can gather
more information.
Seattle Municipal Judge Ron Mamiya set March 27 as Locklear's
next court date. The offensive tackle has been charged with assault
after witnesses said Locklear grabbed his girlfriend around her
neck outside a Seattle bar.
Locklear pleaded innocent Jan. 17. The charge, a gross
misdemeanor, carries a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a
$5,000 fine.
At his first court appearance, Locklear was also ordered to have
no contact with the girlfriend, who lived with him. He also must
abstain from alcohol and other drugs while the case is pending.
Locklear, 24, a third-round draft choice out of North Carolina
State in 2004, was arrested Jan. 15, hours after the team's 20-10
playoff win over the Washington Redskins.
Police said three independent witnesses told officers he grabbed
his 23-year-old girlfriend on the sidewalk as they argued after he
reportedly got upset with her for dancing with another man at a
nearby nightspot.
Officers wrote that they saw red marks on her neck and chest,
but she began weeping and refused to provide more information,
insisting, "He didn't do anything." She also declined medical
attention and would not let officers photograph the marks on her
body or provide a written statement, according to a police report.
Police said Locklear confirmed he and the woman had been arguing
but said he grabbed her by the front of her shirt, not her neck.
Locklear made a public apology and played that same week against
the Carolina Panthers in the NFC title game that Seattle won 34-14.
He also played in the Seahawks' Super Bowl loss to Pittsburgh.