A.C. Leonard Arrested For Misdemeanor Domestic Battery

Florida tight end A.C. Leonard was arrested for domestic battery on Wednesday night, according to the Gainesville Sun. He was released on his own recognizance Thursday morning.

The Sun provided details from the police report:

According to the arrest report, Leonard became involved in a verbal dispute with a woman he lives with and it escalated into a physical confrontation.

Leonard put both hands in the alleged victim's chest and neck area and shoved her to the ground, causing her to strike here head on a dog cage, according to the police report.

While the report also alleges that Leonard told the woman to leave, then grabbed her by the hair to force her to leave, Leonard also told the arresting officer "I never hit her. I just wanted her to leave." The arrest report includes observations of a pair of abrasions on the woman's arms.

Alachua County's jail records show an Alcorus De Vonte Leonard having been booked at 9:42 p.m. on Wednesday for "Battery: touch or strike," which is listed as a first degree misdemeanor; the statute under which Leonard was booked, 784.03.1a1, covers both felony and misdemeanor battery. The Gainesville Sun's website for Alachua County mugshots does not show Leonard's at the moment. A conviction on a first degree misdemeanor charge in Florida can result in a sentence of imprisonment for up to a year.

Leonard is a rising sophomore and came on late in Florida's passing game in 2011, catching eight passes for 99 yards. Transfer rumors about Leonard swirled for a while, but had receded since the middle of the season.

Leonard's arrest is the second of Florida's 2012 offseason, following Leon Orr's citation for possession of marijuana and paraphernalia in early January. Orr received deferred prosecution in that case.