Rick Ross has reportedly had the felony battery charge against him dismissed in his domestic violence case involving his former girlfriend, Jazzma Kendrick.
According to court documents obtained by XXL on Friday (Oct. 30), prosecutors dropped the felony battery/strangulation charge against the rapper, citing insufficient evidence. Ross is now facing two misdemeanor charges related to the incident: battery and battery/domestic violence. TMZ also reports that the felony charge was dismissed due to a lack of evidence.
Ross was arrested on Oct. 1 after voluntarily surrendering to authorities over domestic violence allegations. He was initially charged with one felony count of battery by strangulation and one misdemeanor count of battery. The rapper pleaded not guilty in court later that day and was subsequently released on a $5,000 bond.
According to TMZ, Ross’ ex-girlfriend, Jazzma Kendrick, contacted the police on Sept. 29, alleging that the rapper had assaulted her during an incident on Aug. 28. Kendrick claimed Ross became upset after seeing a photo she was tagged in on social media and accused her of being involved with someone else before the situation turned physical.
In the police report, Kendrick alleged that Ross “struck her multiple times during an altercation and restricted her breathing by twisting the collar of her hoodie.” She further claimed that he punched her in the chest several times, choked her, and slammed her against a wall. Kendrick had initially shared the allegations online the day before contacting the police.
Ross has denied all the accusations and took to Instagram to maintain his innocence following his release from jail.
“OK, first and foremost, I am totally innocent of the fabricated allegations made against myself,” he said. “I repeat, I am totally innocent with these fabricated allegations made against myself. Now I have an amazing team and they’re such an amazing team and I am totally confident that these fabricated allegations will be laid to rest.”
Jazzma Kendrick has yet to make any further public comments about the case.
