Chael
Sonnen received some good news on Wednesday regarding the
charges he faces for his role in an alleged attack at a Las Vegas
hotel this past December.
According to a report from the
Las Vegas Review-Journal, prosecutors dropped a felony battery
charge against the UFC veteran, who is accused of assaulting
multiple people a Four Seasons Hotel in Las Vegas on Dec. 18. Las
Vegas Justice of the Peace Joe Bonaventure allowed the prosecution
to file an amended criminal complaint against Sonnen, which reduced
his charges to six misdemeanors. Sonnen
initially faced 11 charges – including one for felony battery
by strangulation – when the prosecution filed charges earlier this
month.
Last week, Christopher and Julie Stellpflug
filed a lawsuit against Sonnen, claiming that the ex-fighter
attacked them in the hallway of the Four Seasons “without
provocation.” Sonnen initially faced five misdemeanor battery
charges for altercations with five different people, but those were
“dismissed by the court without prejudice.”
Sonnen’s attorney then requested the district attorney’s office to
re-visit the case after the new charges were filed last week.
“I believe that’s exactly what happened, and they realized that the
more appropriate way to move forward would be with this amended
complaint,” Figler told the Review-Journal.
The felony charge against Sonnen was due to the UFC veteran
allegedly placing Christopher Stellpflug in a choke hold during the
incident. According to the Review-Journal, both Stellpflugs are
currently recovering from concussions suffered in the alleged
attack. Sonnen also allegedly attacked another hotel guest and
multiple security guards during the incident.
The Stellpflugs’ attorney, Kory Kaplan, said that the couple
protested Sonnen’s charges being reduced.
“After the charges were filed, they were contacted by a deputy
district attorney who confirmed that felony charges were
appropriate,” Kaplan said during a hearing.
Sonnen last fought at Bellator 222, where he fell to Lyoto
Machida via second-round TKO on June 14, 2019. He is 31-17-1 in
MMA and challenged for middleweight and light heavyweight gold
during a memorable UFC stint. Sonnen currently serves as an analyst
for ESPN and runs his own grappling promotion, Submission
Underground. He also has recently served as a commentator for the
Eagle FC promotion.