While UFC women’s bantamweight Julianna Pena appears to have been involved in a bar fight early Sunday morning in Spokane, Wash., her arrest stems from actions allegedly committed after it had concluded.
According to a follow up report from MMAFighting.com, with information provided by a Spokane PD public information officer, Pena’s arrest came after assaulting the owner and an employee of an establishment near where a fight had occurred.
Per the report, Pena and a training partner, Josh Gow, attempted to get into the bathroom of a business named Zola’s after the fight to clean up a facial wound suffered by Gow during a street fight. According to witnesses, Pena became “irate” when bar employees at Zola’s said they were closed and would not let them in. She then allegedly kicked one of the employees in the groin, and did the same – twice – to the owner outside of the establishment.
When police arrived to address the reported street fight, Pena and Gow were found outside of Zola’s and questioned. Pena denied anything happening, but given witness statements was ultimately arrested. She was the only individual arrested at the scene. She was released on $2,000 bail Sunday afternoon, and is slated to appear in court next week. The UFC says they are still “gathering information,” and it’s unclear what, if any, discipline will be doled out on their end.
Penick’s Analysis: I don’t expect she’s going to face an actual jail sentence, as it’s not as severe and egregious a situation as it obviously could have been. That said, something smaller could certainly be in play, along with a fine, even if she pleads down. We’ll get a better idea after an initial court appearance next week, and the UFC will take their cues from there.
[Photo (c) Troy Taormina via USA Today Sports]
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