NBA icon Shawn Kemp got off with a light sentence Friday as his ongoing legal battle finally reached its conclusion.
The Pierce County District Court sentenced Kemp to 30 days in jail and 240 hours of community service over an alleged gun firing incident at a shopping mall parking lot in Tacoma, Wash. The sentencing was streamed live on King 5 Seattle’s YouTube page. Kemp will be allowed to serve his month of jail time at home.
Kemp, 55, was accused of firing a gun at two men during the alleged March 2023 incident. The bullets did not hit either of the men. Kemp’s attorneys claimed that the six-time NBA All-Star was acting in self-defense and that the two men had stolen property from Kemp.
Kemp was previously charged with first-degree assault, which is a Class A felony in Washington. He pleaded not guilty to the initial charge. He later pleaded guilty after it was lowered to second-degree assault.
The Seattle SuperSonics star’s personal attorney, Scott Boatman, released a statement Friday regarding what they felt was a fair sentencing for his client.
“Shawn is extremely grateful that the Court exercised its discretion to not impose any jail time and further based that decision on the fact that Shawn’s actions occurred as a result of a failed attempt of self defense,” the statement read.
“Shawn is genuinely regretful of certain decisions he made that day and is committed to working with kids to help them understand the potential consequences of not thinking twice or acting impulsively. Shawn wants to thank his legal team of Tim Leary and Aaron Kiviat, his consultant Paula Sardinas, and of course his family and all of his close friends and supporters. Shawn now looks forward to continuing to make a positive impact as a community leader, mentor, and small business owner.”
Kemp spent eight of his 14 NBA seasons in Seattle as a high-flying superstar for the Sonics. He had career averages of 14.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks across over a thousand NBA games played.