Son of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar charged with stabbing attack on neighbor
The son of Laker’s legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was charged Tuesday with multiple felonies after prosecutors allege he stabbed a neighbor during an argument over trashcans.
Adam Abdul-Jabbar, 28, of San Clemente is facing three felony counts of assault with a deadly weapon as well as a felony count of carrying a dirk or dagger and sentencing enhancements for inflicting great bodily injury, according to the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
According to the DA’s office, Abdul-Jabbar’s 60-year-old neighbor suffered a fractured skull during the June 9 confrontation and nearly died from blood loss after collapsing outside of a hospital emergency room.
An attorney representing Abdul-Jabbar denied that he was the aggressor in the confrontation.
“It was the complaining witness in this matter who initiated the altercation and it was Mr. Abdul-Jabbar who contacted the police to report it,” Attorney Shawn Holley said in a statement. “For these reasons and many more, we are disappointed that this case was filed, but stand ready to address the charges in court.”
Prosecutors allege that the neighbor confronted Abdul-Jabbar about not taking in trashcans for Abdul-Jabbar’s elderly roommate. The argument reportedly escalated, and prosecutors allege that Abdul-Jabbar stabbed his neighbor several times with a large hunting knife, including one strike to the back of the head.
The neighbor suffered a fractured skull and brain bleed, according to the DA’s office. His wife drove him to the hospital.
“A dispute between neighbors should never escalate to violence, much less the ruthless nature of this attack,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in a written statement. “Violence of any kind will not be tolerated in Orange County and those who choose to inflict violence on others will be prosecuted by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office to the fullest extent of the law.”
If convicted, Abdul-Jabbar faces up to nine years and eight months in prison. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Sept. 9, according to the DA’s office.