Former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor was arraigned Wednesday on a charge of misdemeanor simple assault after being stabbed during a dispute in Pittsburgh early Saturday morning.
Pryor was taken to the hospital just after 4:30 a.m. Saturday following a dispute involving what police described as “mutual combatants” in an apartment on the city’s North Side, and Allegheny County prosecutors charged Shalaya Briston of Munhall with felony attempted homicide and aggravated assault, with Pryor facing the misdemeanor charge. Briston was denied bail Wednesday and is being held at the Allegheny County jail.
Pryor’s attorney, Stephen Colafella, told Pittsburgh ABC affiliate WTAE-TV that Pryor went home from the hospital after his arraignment Wednesday but later decided to return because he was not feeling well.
Briston’s attorney, Lee Rothman, asserted to reporters Wednesday that his client acted in self-defense in a violent confrontation against a bigger and stronger man who is a professional athlete.
But later Wednesday, Pryor’s attorney strongly disputed that description as inaccurate.
“It is our position that Terrelle Pryor was in no way an aggressor in this situation, that this young lady was not reacting out of self-defense or any fear of injury at the hands of Terrelle Pryor, but rather this was a situation that occurred and was initiated as a result of the violent behavior and the attitudes of the women who came to his home Saturday morning,” Colafella said, as quoted by WTAE-TV.
Colafella told the TV station the dispute that led to the stabbing was ignited after Briston and two other women who joined her and Pryor for dinner earlier in the night returned to the couple’s apartment.
When the two visitors returned to the apartment, Pryor was woken up by alleged noise from the visiting parties, and an argument began when he asked them to leave. Colafella said things got animated and spilled inside, which led to the stabbing.
Thus far, no charges have been filed against either of the visitors at the apartment.
After Pryor’s illustrious Ohio State career ended in 2011, he spent time with nine NFL teams including the Buffalo Bills, New York Jets, Washington Redskins and Cleveland Browns. He most recently signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars but was waived in September after a hamstring injury.
Pryor, a product of Jeannette, Pennsylvania, was a national star in high school and considered one of the top high school football players in the country when he signed with the Buckeyes in 2008. His recruitment drew national attention because he took the unusual step of waiting until mid-March to make his final decision. Most prospects sign in early February.
At Ohio State, Pryor started as a freshman and was the Rose Bowl MVP during his sophomore season in 2009.