Bengals rookie wide receiver Jermaine Burton has been accused of assaulting a 19-year-old woman he was dating and threatening to kill himself during an incident reported to police at the end of December.
The woman, who claimed she was choked during the Dec. 30 incident, eventually declined to press charges, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported on Wednesday.
It comes amid several off-the-field issues for the 23-year-old Burton, including a decision by the Bengals not to have the receiver travel with them for the season finale in Pittsburgh and a report that he was facing eviction from his apartment.
Wednesday’s report is the most serious incident, with police reports painting an unsettling picture of the events that transpired in December.
According to the Enquirer, the woman called 911 around 8:45 a.m. on Dec. 30 and could be heard sobbing heavily.
Burton and the woman had been dating on and off in the month before the alleged assault and had first met in September.
The couple had reportedly argued during a night out before the incident occurred, and later, Burton allegedly chased the woman into her apartment, broke her phone and choked her before threatening suicide by holding a knife to his neck.
In 911 calls released to the Enquirer, the woman told the emergency operator that Burton “just broke into my house” and that “he just broke my phone.”
She also claimed that Burton had been “pretty abusive” and he had been doing things that “I don’t tolerate.”
In the call, she said he was “yelling” and screaming” at her in the car and that the two had gone their separate ways, but Burton had made his way to her home and was waiting for her.
“He wouldn’t let me go inside. And he choked me (unintelligible) in the hallway,” she said, according to the report. “He blocked the door so I couldn’t go inside, and when I did go inside, he chased me upstairs. He broke into my house. He broke my phone. This is the second time he’s broken my phone in the past month.
“He broke my phone. He hit me and he left.”
The woman suffered minor injuries and did not need medical attention and by the time police arrived, Burton had left the scene.
The unnamed victim originally said she wanted to press charges but later changed her mind.
The victim labeled Burton a “narcissist” and a “manipulator” when she described his alleged suicide threat and said he had gotten into her dishwasher to get a knife and put it to his neck.
In a statement to the Enquirer, the Bengals said: “We are aware of information related to Jermaine Burton. We will continue to evaluate as we gather additional details and will have no further comment at this time.”
The outlet reported that Burton posted a cryptic message on his Instagram story on Saturday that read, “*lies*. Stop hitting my phone.”
Burton, a third-round pick out of Alabama, had just four catches for 107 yards this season for the Bengals on the field.
If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-WELL for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.
