Lawyers Weigh In On Likelihood Of Jonathan Majors Going To Jail After Guilty Verdict

Hollywood star Jonathan Majors was found guilty of assault and harassment of his ex-girlfriend Grace Jabbari and now faces at least a year in jail for his crimes.

After the jury's verdict, Majors' sentencing was scheduled for February 6, but his team has expressed their intention to completely clear his name by filing an appeal.

The actor's career has already taken a major hit after being found guilty of assault, with movie giant Marvel Studios completely dropping him from the upcoming projects he was attached to.

With his assault trial, speculations run amok on whether Majors would go to prison for his crimes. The actor was found guilty of two misdemeanor charges out of four: one count of reckless assault in the third degree and a non-criminal charge of harassment as a violation.

The actor was found not guilty of another assault charge with intent to cause harm and one count of aggravated harassment.

Speaking to People Magazine, lawyers Brett Ward and Kate Mangels, both of whom are not connected to the case, shared their thoughts on Majors' fate and if he would eventually have to go to prison.

"I would say that it's highly unlikely that he does any type of significant time," Ward told the news outlet, noting that while Majors' charges carry a possible one-year sentence, there are other options such as probation and behavioral programs for the judge to choose from come February.

That being said, Ward notes the judge might decide to use Majors as an example because of the attention the trial received "to show that this type of behavior will not be tolerated, [that] you don't assault your intimate partner."

Majors will probably appeal too, Ward said, a sentiment echoed by the actor's legal team. He added that if any jail term is imposed, the "Creed III" star "may serve it."

"Or he could try to stay that, pending an appeal. And if it's not jail, then he'll take care of whatever he has to take care of in terms of any kind of programs or probation the court requires," the lawyer continued.

When questioned by the news outlet on the reason behind the jury finding Majors not guilty of misdemeanor assault in the third degree and misdemeanor aggravated harassment in the second degree, Ward noted that the jury must have believed Majors did not plan to hurt Jabbari.

"It says to me that the jury felt this was not so one-sided, and it was more a crime of emotion than planning, that this is kind of a heat-of-the-moment type of situation," the lawyer told People, calling the jury's verdict "compromised."

Adding to this, Mangels stated, "It really seems like that the prosecution wasn't able to show the jury enough evidence of Major's mental state to show intent. They were apparently able to show enough evidence that an assault occurred and that there was an injury. But the missing piece was his mental state."

According to Ward, two pieces of evidence seemed to support Majors' position. He noted that during her testimony, Jabbari revealed that she "grabbed the phone out of [Majors'] hand first when she saw the text from what was reported to be another woman. And two, the last bit of video footage, he ran away, and she chased him."

Ward told the news outlet that Majors' push for a jury verdict may have been a big mistake, adding that a plea deal would have been the better option for the actor if one was presented.

"To fight this and to let it become the public spectacle that it's become and now have a guilty verdict is a mistake," Ward concluded.

Shortly after the jury made their decision, Majors' lawyer, Priya Chaudhry, shared their dissatisfaction.

"It is clear that the jury did not believe Grace Jabbari's story of what happened in the SUV because they found that Mr. Majors did not intentionally cause any injuries to her. We are grateful for that," Chaudhry said on Monday, December 18. "We are disappointed, however, that despite not believing Ms. Jabbari, the jury nevertheless found that Mr. Majors was somehow reckless while she was attacking him."

She added, "Mr. Majors is grateful to God, his family, his friends, and his fans for their love and support during these harrowing eight months. Mr. Majors still has faith in the process and looks forward to fully clearing his name."

The prosecution, on the other hand, was pleased with the verdict, stating: "A jury determined that pattern of abuse and coercion culminated with Mr. Majors assaulting and harassing his girlfriend. We thank the jury for its service and the survivor for bravely telling her story despite having to relive her trauma on the stand."

After being found guilty of assault and harassment, Majors was quickly dropped by Marvel Studios, ultimately putting an end to what looked like a lucrative multi-movie deal between the actor and the film giant.