Former NFL star Antonio Brown was in a Miami-Dade courtroom Wednesday morning to formally resolve the attempted murder case that once left him facing decades behind bars. Brown appeared before Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez alongside his attorney, Mark Eiglarsh. Brown was to plead no contest to the reduced charge of aggravated assault and receive probation rather than prison.
Adjudication is also expected to be withheld, meaning Brown would not be considered a convicted felon.
However, Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez had other plans. Once the hearing commenced, she announced she was not sufficiently up to speed to move forward with Antonio Brown’s change-of-plea hearing today. Judge Tinkler explained that she is currently in the throes of a capital trial and has not had enough time to review the necessary materials.
The change-of-plea hearing has now been moved to October 28.
As Los Angeles previously reported, Brown was charged with attempted second-degree murder over a May 16, 2025 confrontation outside a celebrity boxing event in Miami, where police accused him of firing two shots at Zul-Qarnain Kwame Nantambu following a fight. Brown pleaded not guilty and maintained that he acted in self-defense, even pursuing dismissal of the case under Florida’s Stand Your Ground law. The original charge exposed him to as much as 30 years in prison, including a potential 20-year mandatory minimum.
Eiglarsh has said Brown continues to maintain his innocence but chose certainty over the risk of trial, describing the prosecution’s deal as “an offer he couldn’t refuse.” The plea also comes weeks after Nantambu stunningly said he had “forgiven Brown” and no longer wished to participate in the prosecution.
Brown will return to court on October 28.
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