Brett Rogers’ Domestic Assault Case Could Be Settled Before Set September 13 Trial Date

(“This? Oh, this isn’t assault; it’s a show of affection where I come from.”)

In spite of the fact that a jury trial date been set for former Strikeforce heavyweight Brett Rogers for 8:30 a.m. on September 13 in Dakota County District Court where he will answer to charges of beating his wife in front of their two children, it’s possible that the case could be settled next month.

According to court records, a settlement conference between the prosecutor assigned to the case and Rogers’ defense team has been scheduled for August 31 and if all goes well for “The Grim” the case could be resolved without a trial if the State accepts his plea.

Rogers is charged with several felonies including third-degree assault and domestic assault by strangulation after attacking his wife, Tijuana in their Apple Valley, Minnesota home late last month. The alleged assault was witnessed by the couple’s two young daughters as well as neighbors, who have since filed for a restraining order from the Rogers family for an unrelated incident.

At a bail hearing on Monday, Judge Rex D. Stacey set Rogers’ bond at $100,000 and as a condition of his release forbade him from entering the his family’s home, from having contact with her, from possessing any firearms or other weapons and required him to attend counselling sessions. A revision was made to the court order later in the week to allow him to have phone contact with both the victim and his children, which is an anomaly in domestic cases as it opens up the door for defendants to persuade their victims to drop charges or not to testify against them in court.

Rogers’ attorney, Murad M. Mohammad with MJM Legal in Woodbury, issued a press release last week, which proclaimed that his client, despite police reports stating that both his daughters and two separate neighbors witnessed the attack on Tijuana, was innocent, pointing out that this was the first time he has been charged with a domestic violence-related crime.

“Mr. Rogers asserts his innocence in this matter, and is confident that the facts of what happened will vindicate his assertion of innocence,” the press release said.

Worst. Lawyer. Ever.

Why didn’t the Unibomber’s attourney think of that one? “My client has never been charged with sending mail bombs before, so he must be innocent.”