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Stefon Diggs, the New England Patriots’ star wide receiver, is facing serious criminal allegations that have landed him in a courtroom calendar conflict with the postseason. Law enforcement reports say Diggs has been charged with one count of felony strangulation and one count of misdemeanor assault after an incident alleged to have occurred in early December.
According to police accounts, the alleged victim was a female employee who had been working for Diggs as a personal chef, and what began as a dispute over payment reportedly escalated into physical violence. She initially declined to press charges when she first spoke with police but later reversed course and asked that prosecutors move forward, which is why this matter is now in the criminal docket.
The timing is explosive for Patriots fans and for the league: Diggs is slated for arraignment on January 23, just two days before the AFC Championship Game on January 25. The schedule clash has already prompted defense lawyers to ask the judge to impound police records and to consider moving the arraignment date, a request that speaks to the profound impact publicity can have on a defendant’s right to a fair process.
Diggs’ legal team has vehemently denied the allegations, arguing the claims are unsubstantiated and tied to a financial dispute, and attorneys have indicated they’ve floated a financial offer in hopes of resolving the matter. Those moves—asking to seal reports and talk settlement—should make everyday Americans nervous about whether justice is being negotiated behind closed doors for the wealthy and famous.
The New England Patriots and the NFL have issued the predictable statements that they are aware of the case and will cooperate, and the team has publicly said it supports Diggs while the matter is ongoing. Fans deserve transparency, and the league owes it to its viewers to be forthright about how allegations of serious misconduct will be handled, not to bunker behind bland corporate verbiage.
Conservatives can and should stand for two things at once: the presumption of innocence and real accountability. No one should be tried in the court of public opinion based on media soundbites, but neither should celebrity status provide a fast pass to evade scrutiny or consequences if the facts support guilt.
This case is also a reminder of a larger cultural rot: a celebrity infrastructure that too often tries to buy privacy and closure rather than face public accountability. Patriots and NFL fans are right to feel conflicted—rooting for a team doesn’t mean you ignore possible crimes, and loving the game doesn’t exempt stars from the law.
Hardworking Americans watching this unfold want a fair process, clear answers, and equal application of justice. We should demand the courts move carefully but visibly, that evidence be preserved and seen by the public, and that neither headline nor paycheck alone determine an outcome.
