For 9 years, Charles Oakley has been in a legal battle, and it seems he has not given up. Judge Richard J. Sullivan has ruled in favor of Madison Square Garden, dismissing the former New York Knicks’ surviving assault and battery claims for the third time.
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First, MSG issued a statement, stating, “For more than nine years, Mr. Oakley’s lawyers have pursued claims they knew were false.” In fact, the statement also included claims for legal action against Oakley’s lawyer, Douglas Wigdor and his law firm.
The case had been dismissed twice before, and Friday’s ruling makes it the third time. But it’s not closed yet, as two motions remain pending. Charles Oakley is looking for a third revival and wants a jury to decide his fate.
On his Instagram, Oakley added a photo of his playing days with the hashtags #ItsNotOver and #JuryTrial.
This is after Judge Richard J. Sullivan ruled that Oakley had not presented enough evidence for a reasonable jury to find that MSG security committed an actionable assault or that MSG intended to place Oakley in fear of unlawful physical contact.
“Even though the alleged assault occurred in the middle of Madison Square Garden in front of 19,000 and scores of cameras, Oakley concedes there’s no other witness — besides himself — who says he was pushed to the ground,” Sullivan wrote on the first page of his opinion and order.
While the judge dismissed it for the third time, Charles Oakley’s lawyer hasn’t given up.
“We are disappointed with the Court’s rulings,” Wigdor said in a statement to The New York Post. “We believe there are conflicting accounts, and only a jury can decide what exactly happened.”
Just like Oakley, who wants a jury trial, even Wigdor is hopeful that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will send the case back for an immediate jury trial.
The legal dispute began on February 8, 2017, during the Knicks’ game against the Los Angeles Clippers. He was sitting near the franchise owner, Dolan, when the confrontation began. Oakley was handcuffed and arrested after the altercation, but the criminal charges were later dropped.
However, later that year, Charles Oakley filed a lawsuit, alleging, among other claims, assault, battery, false imprisonment and defamation. His original complaint also named Dolan, but the claims against the Knicks owner were dismissed in 2020.
But in November 2020, the appeals court reversed the dismissal of his assault and battery claims, allowing those portions of the case to continue. Then the case was dismissed again in 2021, but in May 2023, the Second Circuit reversed that decision for a second time.
Amid the legal trouble, Charles Oakley has decided not to return to the MSG. He missed the playoff success at the Garden but supported the Knicks when they played on the road. He would only return if the Knicks owner apologized.
“He started it, he can make it go away,” Oakley said in June. “He’s the boss.”
While Charles Oakley was banned due to the case, the ban was later lifted in 2017. So, the Knicks legend is holding out and continues to ask for a jury trial.