Basketball Hall of Famer Ray Allen appeared in a Miami courtroom Wednesday, where he was reprimanded by a judge after he failed to show up to jury duty last week.
According to the Miami Herald, U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke called out the two-time NBA champion for disrespecting the court and his fellow jurors in a deadly carjacking trial.
Cooke also ordered Allen — who attended the hearing with his wife and kids — to donate $1,000 to a charity of his choice, saying, that “no man or woman is above performing that civic duty.”
Allen, who currently coaches the boys’ basketball team at Miami’s Gulliver Prep, said he plans make his court-ordered donation to diabetes research.
The judge disciplined Allen after initially moving the trial date to accommodate Allen’s schedule, so that he could attend Kevin Garnett’s jersey retirement ceremony in Boston. Allen, according to the Miami Herald, had asked the judge to move the date to honor his former Celtics teammate at TD Garden on March 13.
At the ceremony, Allen and Garnett met on the court and hugged, signaling an end to their 10-year feud, which stemmed from Allen’s exit in Boston to join LeBron James and the Heat in 2012.
Allen was later a no-show at the rescheduled trial on March 15, and reportedly did not respond to messages courtroom deputy, Ivan Marchena.
After the trial began without the 19-year NBA veteran, Judge Cooke issued an order to “show cause” to explain why Allen did not fulfill his juror duties.
“Mr. Allen’s actions in failing to appear for jury duty are both baffling and disconcerting,” Cooke wrote in her show-cause order, per the Miami Herald.
“Through his actions in failing to appear for jury duty, Mr. Allen appears to not appreciate or understand the importance of jury service. The right to a trial by jury is sacrosanct,” Cooke wrote. “However, the right to trial by jury can only be preserved if those who are chosen to serve on a jury actually fulfill their obligation to serve.”
Allen’s attorney, William McCue, issued an apology on behalf of the 10-time NBA All-Star, saying his absence at the trial “was a complete misunderstanding.”