A Florida judge on Wednesday granted bail to former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, who'll have to wear a GPS monitor under house arrest while fighting an attempted murder charge.
Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court Judge Mindy Glazer denied the prosecution's bid to have Brown jailed without bail as the state argued that the former player has the means to flee overseas.
But defense lawyer Mark Eiglarsh insisted his client isn't a flight risk and would be living and working in South Florida. Brown wore what appeared to be red jail garb and appeared in a remote hearing before Judge Glazer.
Home confinement would still allow Brown to work and support his seven children, with an eighth child on the way, Eiglarsh said.
"He had a passport, he no longer has a passport," Eiglarsh told the court. "He'll be living at his home, right near my office in Broward County, right near my home and we'll be working zealously on his case."
A lawyer for the man who Brown allegedly attempted to shoot also argued against the player's bond, claiming that the defendant has no regard for the law.
Before his capture, Brown had been posting regularly on his social media accounts and flaunting his seemingly luxurious lifestyle, the lawyer said.
He recently posted an advertisement for online sports betting website BC Game to more than 15 million Instagram followers. Footage showed Brown at an unspecified location behind the wheel of a black Lamborghini.
"Mr. Brown's intention the entire time was to kill this man, to kill my client," the victim's lawyer Richard Cooper said. "He not only flees the jurisdiction to a country that he believes is non-extraditable, but he's flaunting it on social media for months. And with help, the U.S. marshals were the only way that he was coming back."
Brown has pleaded not guilty to the attempted murder, stemming from a shooting outside an amateur boxing event at Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood on May 16.
Brown was captured in Dubai earlier this month before being transported to New Jersey and Florida.
Prosecutor Kimberly Rivera said Brown's trip to Dubai shows his ability to leave the state and nation. But Eiglarsh contended that his client has regular business in Dubai and went there after the alleged shooting, but before charges were filed against him.
