CINCINNATI — Joe Mixon will again face charges over accusations that he waved a gun at a woman in January, according to the Cincinnati Police Department.
The Bengals running back will be re-summoned to court on April 19 over the allegations, for which charges against him were initially dropped.
CPD said they re-filed a charge of aggravated menacing on Friday. The charge is a first-degree misdemeanor and could carry a maximum sentence of 180 days, a maximum fine of $1000 and a maximum of five years of probation in Ohio.
"This decision was reached following the discovery of new evidence during the investigative process," read a statement from CPD issued Friday.
A spokesperson for the Cincinnati Bengals said the team is aware of the charges re-filed against Mixon, but declined to comment further.
"The Club is aware misdemeanor charges have been raised against Joe Mixon," the spokesperson said on Friday. "The Club is monitoring the situation and will not comment further at this time.”
Mixon's attorneys said the Bengals running back will plead "not guilty" to the charge.
"It is our belief that this case should be tried in the court, not in the press," read a statement from attorneys Scott Croswell and Merlyn Shiverdecker. "We will therefore be making no further public statements in reference to this matter."
Mixon briefly faced a charge of aggravated menacing that was dropped in early February; after charges were dropped, Cincinnati police said the investigator looking into Mixon's case did not follow a directive to "submit the case for a cursory review before any possible charge was filed."
The first arrest warrant was issued for Mixon on Feb. 2. According to an affidavit, Mixon pointed a firearm at a woman and stated, "You should be popped in the face. I should shoot you, the police can't (sic) get me."
The offense allegedly happened the day before Cincinnati took on the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round of the playoffs in the 2022 season.
After Mixon's charge was dropped, CPD continued to investigate the incident. The city prosecutor's office said at the time that the alleged victim would like to go forward with the charge if the city decided to refile it at a later date.
In a statement made in February, the Bengals said, "The club is aware misdemeanor charges have been raised against Joe Mixon. The club is investigating the situation and will not comment further at this time."
This is not Mixon's first misdemeanor charge. When he was in college, Mixon entered an Alford plea to an assault charge in 2014 for punching a woman, breaking bones in her face. An Alford plea means a person admits a trial would likely yield a guilty verdict, but does not admit to committing the crime.
He was suspended for an entire season following the assault charge.
The 26-year-old just wrapped up his sixth season in Cincinnati. He was an offensive captain for the Bengals and became the first NFL player with 150-plus yards and four or more touchdowns from scrimmage in the first half of a game since 2002 in the team's season-changing win over the Carolina Panthers in November.
