A judge in Las Vegas sent the message on Friday that if you’re a mega-superstar boxer, the laws don’t apply. Floyd Mayweather, Jr. will be allowed to delay jail time he earned by beating his ex-girlfriend and threatening to beat their children in order to participate in a boxing match. The judge’s stated reason? The match promises to bring the city of Las Vegas millions of dollars. If that’s not an example of someone buying their way out of trouble, I don’t know what is.
Mayweather has had many past brushes with the law due to his inability to keep his much-celebrated violence to the boxing ring. In this instance, he plead down original felony and misdemeanor charges that could have resulted with a sentence of 34 years in prison. Instead, in exchange for pleading guilty to a reduced battery domestic violence charge and no contest to two harassment charges, he will serve three months in prison. But not until he’s ready. And that means after his Cinco de Mayo “mega-fight.”
Meanwhile, Mayweather’s ex-girlfriend – who Mayweather assaulted in the midst of an argument about her “dating another man” – and their three children, who witnessed the violence, will continue to live in fear. And I’m sure they’ve heard the message loud and clear: Their safety isn’t worth as much as the revenue “Money” (Mayweather’s nickname) brings to Sin City.