Jonathan Majors’ Assault Case Goes to Trial. What to Know

On Wednesday, a New York judge denied the motion to dismiss Jonathan Majors’ domestic abuse case. The actor will go to trial for the charges on Nov. 29.

Before Wednesday’s hearing in New York Criminal Court, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office filed a 115-page document refuting Majors’ motion to dismiss the case. The document, obtained by Variety and other outlets, stated that prosecutors did not believe that the woman who accused Majors of assault had also committed a crime. (Majors filed a complaint against her in June, after he had been arrested for the original incident in late March.)

According to the filing, the woman saw a text on Majors’ phone that said, “Wish I was kissing you right now.”

When the woman took his phone, he “began grabbing the right side of [her] body and prying [her] right middle finger off the phone, causing bruising, swelling, and substantial pain.”

Majors “then grabbed [her] arm and right hand and proceeded to twist [her] forearm, causing substantial pain to her finger and arm. The defendant then struck [her] right ear, causing a laceration to the back of her ear and substantial pain.”

The actor took his phone back, left the car, and the woman tried to follow him. He then “grabbed her, picked her up, and threw her back inside.” She “sustained substantial pain, including a fractured finger, bruising about her body, a laceration behind her right ear, and a bump on her head.”

The DA’s office document also asserts that Majors’ lawyers asked police to make a “Wanted” poster with the woman’s photo on it, and that they misrepresented and leaked court evidence to the press. It also mentions a Sept. 2022 incident in London in which the same woman had to obtain medical care. Details remain unclear, but prosecutors are trying to obtain a copy of the police report from London police.

Also during Wednesday’s hearing, during which Majors appeared via Zoom, his lawyers asked that “contested evidence” not be shared with the press or the public because of the high-profile nature of the case. The judge has not ruled on the motion yet, but told press they could file documents against it by Nov. 6.

Majors—slated star of upcoming Marvel projects Loki: Season 2, Avengers: Kang Dynasty, and Avengers: Secret Wars—was arrested on March 25 in Chelsea, Manhattan. He was charged with misdemeanor assault, aggravated harassment, attempted assault, harassment, and strangulation, though the latter charge was later dropped. Majors had pleaded not guilty to all charges. If convicted, he faces up to a year in jail.

The woman, Majors’ then-girlfriend, told police that she was assaulted during an altercation in a taxi, then taken to the hospital with minor injuries to her head and neck. Majors’ legal team has said that it was actually the woman who assaulted Majors.

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Days after the arrest, Majors’ crisis publicist, Andrew Bourke, released supposed screenshots of a text exchange between the women and Majors.

“They assured me that you won’t be charged,” the screenshots read. “They said they had to arrest you as protocol when they saw the injuries on me and they knew we had a fight. I’m so angry that they did. And I’m sorry you’re in this position. Will make sure nothing happens about this. I love you.”

“I also said to tell the judge to know that the origin of the [911] call was to do with me collapsing and passing out,” they continue, “and your worry as my partner.”

In April, Variety reported that multiple other alleged abuse victims of Majors had come forward and were cooperating with the DA’s office in their prosecution.

Majors’ publicists, the Lede Company, and his management, Management 360, dropped him as a client before his first court appearance. He has also been cut from movie roles, an MLB campaign, and agreed not to attend the Met Gala. The actor stepped down from his work with the Sidney Poitier Initiative and the board of the Gotham Film and Media Institute. The WME talent agency, however, still represents him.