Why did The Game punch a Los Angeles police officer?
The Game has been in trouble with the law lots of times, with a history of violence and gun charges to his name, but an incident in 2017 highlighted the explosive and criminal nature of his temper when it snaps.
Game was taking part in a basketball game hosted at Hollywood High School, which, ostensibly, is a nice thing to be doing. He was 37 at the time, so one might think this was just a bit of fun for a man staying active as 40 approached, but the Compton rapper took it far too seriously.
On the other team that day was a Los Angeles police officer, which, given Game’s criminal past, was always likely to end badly. When this off-duty cop took the ball from Game and proceeded to score a basket, the rapper lost his cool.
After fouling the officer, Game was reported to have then punched him. He was then ordered off the court, but he wasn’t done. In the wake of his ejection from the game, he threatened to kill the cop.
Weeks later, Game was being served with legal papers at his home as a result of his actions. This, too, went badly. Someone was filming as this occurred, which seems to have set Game off again, and he threatened the man and grabbed the camera from him. This, too, wasn’t a great look for the rapper.
The case of the assault against the cop went to court in June 2015, with Game originally reported to have pleaded not guilty. He had posted a $50,000 bail by that point, so he was free. But a further court date loomed, with the possibility of a three-year sentence in the shadows.
The Game’s return to court came in February 2017, where he pleaded no contest to each of the charges against him. He was subsequently sentenced to three years of probation, plus 120 hours of community service. He also had to attend 26 anger management classes and received a six-month suspended sentence.
Amazingly, this incident didn’t even mark the first time that Game had gotten into serious trouble because of his anger during a basketball game. He was accused of producing a firearm and aiming it at a rival player during a game in 2007, which, incidentally, also played out in a school. He literally had forms for this precise sort of thing.
As a result of this previous incident, Game was sentenced to 60 days in jail. Plus, he had to do 150 hours of community service, and he was placed on probation for three years. Perhaps keeping him away from the basketball court in future would be a wise course of action, all things considered?