No Charges for Cromartie

The San Diego Police Department says it has determined there is not enough evidence to prove a bar patron's claim that Chargers cornerback Antonio Cromartie hit him in the head with a champagne bottle hours after the team's victory at Denver.

The case will not be sent to the City Attorney's Office because the investigation found there was not enough evidence to prove a crime occurred, according to police spokesperson Monica Munoz.

Cromartie had been under investigation for assault with a deadly weapon.

Detective Gary Hassen said a witness claimed Cromartie threw a champagne bottle but the player said it slipped from his hand.

A man sustained a cut to the back of his head but nobody was hospitalized or arrested early on Nov. 23

Officers answered a report of a fight at Bar West in Pacific Beach shortly before 1:30 a.m. on Nov. 21, hours after the Chargers beat the Denver Broncos 32-3.

After the attack, witness Gary Ratavossi, who was at Bar West for the first time, described what happened inside the club when the champagne fight started.

"I guess four of the San Diego Charger players ... they grabbed their bottles, literally lined up in a row, kind of like a gunfire position, and just took aim at that side of the table, and just started shaking the bottles and spraying them," Ratavossi said.

Things quickly turned from bad to worse, however.

"I guess one of the Chargers literally held the bottle in his hand, stepped up to one of the members in our group and struck him in the head with a champagne bottle," Ratavossi said. "The bottle then cracked, and there was glass everywhere, pandemonium, people were like, 'Oh, my God!' And his head was bleeding profusely. There was just blood everywhere: his shirt, the floor."

Ratavossi didn't know the attacker's name but said he told police what he knew.

"Honestly, I didn't recognize him, but I described him, what he was wearing to the police," Ratavossi said. "They said they had surveillance cameras and tape."

A 24-year-old San Diego man suffered minor injuries.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
Contact Us