Slava Voynov kicked, choked, bloodied wife according to police
The preliminary hearing for Kings defenseman Slava Voynov occurred in Redondo Beach, Calif. on Monday. And it sounded grim in general for the blueliner on charges of domestic violence. Voynov has been suspended by the NHL indefinitely since Oct. 20.
The Los Angeles Times' Nathan Fenno was in the courtroom and live tweeted some of the horrifying testimony.
Redondo Beach police officer: Voynov's wife had laceration over left eye, blood streaming, red marks on neck.
— Nathan Fenno (@nathanfenno) December 15, 2014
Officer: Voynov pushed wife to ground multiple times, kicked her repeatedly while on ground, chocked her three times.
— Nathan Fenno (@nathanfenno) December 15, 2014
Officer: Voynov pushed her into flat-screen TV where she cut her face.
— Nathan Fenno (@nathanfenno) December 15, 2014
Officer: Voynov's wife required eight stitches to close wound above left eye.
— Nathan Fenno (@nathanfenno) December 15, 2014
I can only catch quick glimpses of photos of the injuries to Voynov's wife. Lots of blood.
— Nathan Fenno (@nathanfenno) December 15, 2014
Among recorded comments attributed to Voynov's wife: "He kicked me here" and "Here he pushed me." #Kings #NHL
— Nathan Fenno (@nathanfenno) December 15, 2014
Note, Voynov's wife has -- at least publicly -- stated through her attorney that "She did not believe, and does not believe, that her husband intended to injure her and she believes that he is not guilty of any crime."
Voynov's lawyer, Craig Renetzky, told The Hockey News on Oct. 22:
"We're hoping the NHL looks at the new evidence and will lift the suspension. What the police will find out when they talk to her is that the action was not related to Mr. Voynov. I can’t go into complete details, but Mr. Voynov never hit the woman. This is really just a pure accident and we’re going to provide them with some additional evidence we hope they’ll present to the District Attorney’s office. And if they do, based on my experience, they don’t have a case."
Also, Voynov is still technically a member of the Kings -- suspended with pay. Also, this is a court proceeding and due process does need to play out.
However, if this is the prosecution's case, it looks pretty bad for Voynov and causes some questions as to how the Kings can proceed with him -- especially in light of the NFL's handling of the Ray Rice situation.
The judge ruled that there was sufficient evidence for a domestic violence case, and the arraignment will be Dec. 29.
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