Former Detroit Lions offensive lineman Rodney Austin was found guilty Tuesday afternoon of four charges, including misdemeanor assault on a woman and a child under 12, in a North Carolina courtroom.
Austin is scheduled to be back in a Mecklenburg County courtroom Thursday for sentencing. He could be sentenced to up to 60 days in jail based on the structured sentencing guidelines in North Carolina.
Austin was arrested on April 17 when a magistrate judge put a warrant out for his arrest after his ex-girlfriend filed a complaint with the office. He was charged with four crimes -- assault on a female; assault on a child under 12; misdemeanor larceny; and interfering with emergency communication -- in an incident on April 5 between midnight and 2 a.m.
He ended up being found guilty on all four charges. The Mecklenburg County District Attorney's office declined to comment on the case since sentencing has yet to happen.
Austin's agent, Mark Magazu, said in a statement that they "disagree with the ruling of the court but accept the outcome." Magazu said Austin "maintains his innocence."
"We urge everyone to keep perspective," Magazu said in the statement. "This is a misdemeanor offense, no one was injured, no one has alleged injury as a result of any alleged action, and the court did not find that anyone had been injured."
According to the initial police report, Austin pushed his ex-girlfriend down at the Alexander Place Apartments in Charlotte while she was holding the couple's child, who was less than a year old.
He also took the woman's cell phone and threw it over the balcony after she said she videotaped the assault.
In the report the woman filed with the magistrate, she wrote "Austin assaulted me and assaulted me with my child in my arms. [Austin] also smashed my phone because I recorded the incident. I was thrown into the living room and then pushed down with child causing me to fall. [Austin] snatched the phone while I tried to call police and took it outside and smashed it to pieces."
At the time of the incident, no arrests were made. But after the accuser went to the magistrate's office, a warrant was filed for Austin's arrest.
The Lions released Austin on April 21, soon after learning of the assault. The Lions had signed Austin as an undrafted free agent out of Elon in 2012.
The NFL had told the Mecklenburg County District Attorney's office it was going to send its own reporter to the trial, as well.