Accused of assaulting Flávio “Cachorrinho” Almeida during the No-Gi World Championship at the end of 2018, in California (USA), Ralph Gracie had to pay bail of US $50 thousand in the United States, on the 20th.
TATAME received the document exclusively. In addition, the black belt had the passport withheld in the country.
In April of this year, Ralph was jailed by US courts. Two months later, Gracie’s student Lincon Pereira was arrested for being involved in the case. On the 16th of September 2019, Ralph traveled to the United States in search of a deal.
According to Gracie Barra attorneys Fernanda Freixinho and Daniel Raizman, Ralph Gracie attempted a verbal agreement to “maintain freedom” in the United States, but the request was not accepted.
“Ralph Gracie presented himself to the American court and an oral request was made by his lawyer to be released without bail due to the assault on Flávio Almeida. The application was denied, however, the bail was set at $ 50,000 and the obligation to surrender his passport to Bond Company, ”the lawyers said in a statement sent to TATAME.
Recap of the facts:
The assault case by Ralph Gracie and his student, Lincoln Pereira, on Flávio “Cachorrinho” Almeida that occurred during the IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu World No-Gi championship on December 15 last year, has a new chapter.
Ralph’s brother Renzo Gracie and his lawyers had a meeting with prosecutor Mathew Plunkett of Orange County, Calif., In an attempt to negotiate the terms of Gracie’s surrender. Since April of this this year, there is a warrant out for the arrest of Ralph Gracie with bail estimated at 50 thousand dollars.
Ralph Gracie has been staying put in Brazil avoiding his arrest.
A reminder of the facts:
Ralph Gracie and Lincoln Pereira assaulted Flavio Almeida in public at the Nogi worlds.
The assault was widely reported.
As you can see the two appear to be amicable at first but things quickly go south.
Ralph Gracie’s Attorney James Cook contacted BJJEE and released the following statement:
I am the attorney who intends to represent Ralph Gracie in the event there are subsequent legal disputes. I reviewed the video and I had an opportunity to discuss the incident with Ralph Gracie. Ralph would like to tell his side of the story about events leading up to the altercation. However, I strongly advised him to say nothing.
I cannot disclose too many details about Ralph’s side of the story given attorney-client considerations. However, I can say that the video does not capture the full spectrum of words and actions leading up to the incident. To view the video within the full context, it is easy to conclude that altercation should be characterized as mutual combat.
It’s worth noting that the incident took place at a combat sporting event, where the spectators are usually competitors. As such, the line between regulated competition and real-life competition is often blurred. Frequently, emotions run high and the contest continues off the mats and after the buzzer. Flavio Almeia and Ralph Gracie are iconic competitors and instructors for our sport. They are not strangers to off-the-mat confrontations. I believe that any further dispute can and should be resolved quickly and without court intervention.
Ralph Gracie has been staying put in Brazil, so his co-assailant Lincoln Pereira was arrested on June 21, according to court documents. The warrant is still out on Ralph Gracie’s arrest.
Ralph’s older brother Renzo has been representing his brother in court and was able to downgrade Lincoln Pereira from a Felony to a Misdemeanor.
He stated:
“My Lawyer, Harley Breite and I flew from NJ to California to defend my brother Ralph. We already had the Co-Defendant Lincoln Pereira downgraded from a Felony to a Misdemeanor and released last month. The District Attorney has 2 Supervisors with him today and tried to prevent my attorney from even speaking and asked for an arrest warrant against Ralph and for the Judge to watch the video. When my lawyer spoke, the Judge denied the Supervisors everything they asked for. The Victim, Flavio Almeida, gave a 20 minute speech calling Ralph a “coward”, “thug” and “terrorist” and said that if Ralph had the courage to fight him that Ralph “knows he wouldn’t last long”. Ralph didn’t have to appear today so it was very easy to say that. But we will return on October 15th to finish Ralph’s case with Ralph in court.
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