PITTSBURGH — Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown faces two $15,000 lawsuits from an April incident during which the All-Pro receiver allegedly yelled at security and threw items from inside a South Florida apartment and off the balcony, according to documents obtained by ESPN.
A guardian of a two-year-old boy is suing Brown for “intentional infliction of emotional distress and assault” after items flung from the 14th floor of The Mansions at Acqualina nearly hit the child, according to Miami-Dade county court filings. The child was with his grandfather near the pool area of the complex when large items — including two vases, an ottoman and other pieces of furniture — fell close to them, according to the filings, which say the child has experienced anxiety and trouble sleeping since.
The owner of the multi-million-dollar condo Brown leased also has filed a case against Brown for damages of breaching the apartment agreement.
Brown called Sunny Isles Beach Police on 10:08 a.m. on April 24 and was “very agitated” upon the arrival of two officers, yelling at security that he thought set him up to be blamed for theft from the day before, according to the police’s incident report. The alleged items stolen include $80,000 and a gun, according to TMZ.
“Apparently when Mr. Brown got upset he started throwing things in the apartment and the coffee table glass was broken along with a few other minor objects,” the Sunny Isles incident report states. “He also threw some objects from the balcony into the pool area causing minor damage there as well.”
The officer eventually calmed Brown, who promised there would be no other issue, the report states.
But much damage was done, including previous complaints of “all kinds of parties and disturbances,” according to George A. Minski, the lawyer representing the condo owner.
“The apartment was in shambles,” Minski said. “Mirrors were smashed, tables were destroyed, there were holes and damages to the walls. Countertops were lifted off the deck. The unit is furnished with leather couches and love seats, and there were burn holes and black magic markers. It looked like they had rumbled. We tried to resolve it amicably and it got nowhere so we filed a lawsuit.”
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said at his Tuesday press conference he has no knowledge of Brown’s situation. The organization will not be commenting on the matter, according to a spokesperson.
Brown’s attorney, Darren Heitner, who has filed a notice of appearance and a motion for extension on the case, declined comment.
ESPN left a message for the attorney representing Ophir Sternberg, the guardian who filed the distress suit.
Minski said Brown signed an apartment lease for three-to-six months but vacated the property shortly after the incident. In the spring, Brown missed a series of voluntary team workouts and bemoaned “constant” pressure from the media upon his return.
“I can’t go nowhere and work out by myself. Fans come meet me at the field — I can’t do nothing normal,” Brown said. “You guys write about me every day. My mom and my kids see it. So we have to deal with these type of things. I started to think to myself, am I really free? I can’t really express myself in this game. I can’t really tell you how I feel.”