The wife of New York Mets closer Jeurys Familia has requested the simple-assault charge against her husband be dropped, the prosecutor in the domestic-violence case against Familia told Newsday.
Fort Lee (N.J.) prosecutor Arthur Balsamo indicated that he will decide before Familia's scheduled Dec. 15 hearing whether to proceed with the misdemeanor case despite the objection of Bianca Rivas, Familia's wife.
"She feels pretty confident about the situation," Balsamo told the newspaper. "She told me specifically that she didn't want to pursue the matter. Ultimately, that's my decision."
Familia was arrested and charged with simple assault on Oct. 31, after he allegedly caused a scratch to the chest and a bruise to the right cheek of his wife. Officer Tony Pickens "found probable cause to believe that domestic violence had occurred," according to the initial complaint.
In a call to Fort Lee Police at 2:18 a.m. on Oct. 31, Rivas said, "My husband had a little bit of alcohol, and he's going crazy."
Even if the case ultimately is dropped, MLB still could punish Familia.
Familia's teammate, Jose Reyes, was suspended the opening two months of the 2016 season despite a domestic-violence charge being dropped after his wife declined to cooperate with prosecutors.
