Adam Abdul-Jabbar, son of basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, was sentenced to six months in jail for stabbing his Southern California neighbor with a hunting knife after a dispute over garbage cans, NPR reported.
After striking a deal, Abdul-Jabbar plead guilty to three counts of assault with a deadly weapon and one count of carrying a dirk or dagger, with sentencing enhancements for inflicting great bodily injury, according to the Orange County district attorney's office.
The sentence was stayed until Jan. 7 so that Abdul-Jabbar can apply for home confinement instead of serving out his sentence, the DA's office said.
Probation officials will decide whether or not he will be allowed to be on house arrest.
Prosecutors vehemently objected to the plea offer and sought a seven-year sentence for the crime.
On June 9, 2020, Abdul-Jabbar stabbed his 60-year-old neighbor, with who he shares a driveway, several times after he was confronted about failing to take in trash cans for his elderly roommate. According to the court records, the man was stabbed in the back of the head, suffering a fractured skull, and nearly died of blood loss after collapsing outside of the emergency room.
District Attorney Todd Spitzer believed that the punishment did not fit the crime.
"This slap on the wrist is an absolute miscarriage of justice," Spitzer said."This man nearly bled to death in front of the emergency room doors after being stabbed so violently over and over that his skull was fractured."
"We believe the complete disregard for human life over a dispute over trash cans is so egregious it warranted prison time," he continued.
