Browns' Devin Bush Jr. learns his fate after allegedly assaulting girlfriend during fight over mashed potatoes
Cleveland Browns linebacker Devin Bush Jr. has been found not guilty of assault and harassment charges, according to online records.
The 27-year-old was arrested in May after an alleged dispute with his girlfriend over mashed potatoes at the couple's Pittsburgh-area home. As reported by TribLive.com, the argument started over how Bush was moving mashed potatoes into a container in the couple's kitchen.
Accuser Shkurte Leka, the mother of Bush's 3-year-old daughter, claimed he assaulted her and took her car keys when she began videoing an argument between the two of them on her iPhone. She further claimed he chased her through their home and pinned her down on a table as he tried to take away her cell phone, which he smashed.
Leka claimed she suffered cuts on her right wrist and toe as a result of the incident. Bush denied any physical contact but did admit to smashing Leka's phone.
He was found not guilty of simple assault or harassment by Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Bruce Beemer after prosecutors failed to prove his intent to harm or injure Leka.
'The testimony elicited at trial indicated that the putative victim of the domestic violence was electronically and surreptitiously intercepting the oral communications of Devin Bush,' defense attorney Robert Del Greco Jr. told the Daily Mail in an email on Wednesday.
Bush (left) was accused of assaulting the mother of his 3-year-old daughter (right)
Leka (pictured) claimed she suffered cuts on her right wrist and toe as a result of the incident
'When Mr. Bush learned of this interception, he voiced his objection, but the interception continued,' Del Greco continued. 'Mr. Bush removed and broke his phone that was the mechanism of the electronic interception.
'Judge Beemer ruled that because all parties agreed that the intent of Mr. Bush was to remove the phone and not to cause harm, the requisite element intent was not satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt.'
Del Greco expressed relief when speaking to TribLive.com after the trial.
'We are relieved and pleased with the verdict,' he said. 'I think Devin Bush testified cogently and convincingly regarding his abject lack of intent of harm or injure anyone,' Del Greco told TribLive.com after the trial in Pittsburgh.
A first-round pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2019, the Michigan product also played in Seattle before arriving in Cleveland in 2024.
He has been a rare bright spot for the Browns this season, recording 93 total tackles and two interceptions for 3-11 Cleveland.
