The league’s villain just caught a case off the court. Dillon Brooks was formally charged with DUI on Monday, months after that wild March traffic stop where bodycam showed him blowing a 0.0 while the officer kept telling him his car smelled like weed.
Scottsdale prosecutors filed one count of DUI for liquor, drugs, vapors or a combo, a Class 1 misdemeanor, according to court records. He is due back for arraignment on October 28, one week after the Suns open the regular season.
The stop went down around 1:33 in the morning on March 6, hours after a Suns home loss to the Bulls. Police said Brooks failed to keep his lane. The officer told Brooks his car smelled like a dispensary. Brooks told the cop he had not smoked in “like, six months” and was playing with a busted hand. He blew a 0.00 on the breathalyzer. Police drew blood, booked him, and he was out by 3:30am. A source close to Brooks told ESPN the arrest was marijuana related.
His attorney Larry Kazan said Brooks “acknowledges that he has been charged in connection with this matter” and “respects the legal process and intends to allow the matter to proceed through the courts.” The Suns told ESPN they “addressed the matter with Dillon” and had no further comment.
This is not his only date in Scottsdale court. A January stop where he was accused of doing 85 in a 45 turned into a Class 3 misdemeanor speeding charge and a Class 2 misdemeanor reckless driving charge, with a trial readiness conference set for November 9. A separate February speeding allegation was dismissed in July.
The timing is ugly. Brooks signed a three year, $73 million extension in August after a career high 20.2 points a game last season. He came to Phoenix in the Kevin Durant trade and built a reputation as the guy everybody loves to hate, with six career suspensions to his name. The season tips October 21. His arraignment lands October 28.
He has been charged, not convicted. The case moves from here.