Zaire Wade pleaded not guilty on Thursday to a felony domestic violence charge during his arraignment in a Pasadena courtroom, and his defense attorney stepped outside afterward to lay out how the team plans to fight the case. Wade, the 24-year-old oldest son of NBA Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade, entered the plea to a single felony count and is due back in court in September for a preliminary hearing.
Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse, defense attorney Kevin Moghtanei confirmed the plea and made clear the defense is rejecting the allegation outright. He said Wade was arraigned on a domestic violence charge, that they are denying the charges, and that they entered a plea of not guilty. Zaire Wade himself declined to say anything as he left, telling reporters only, “No. Sorry.”
The charge stems from an incident in the early morning hours of June 21 in Burbank, California. According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office and multiple reports, Burbank police officers responded around 5:30 a.m. to a 911 call about a woman screaming inside a residence, with neighbors also reporting loud yelling and stomping. When officers arrived, they found Wade and a woman, identified in court documents only as Jane Doe, who had visible lacerations on her face and body. The woman was not taken to a hospital, according to NBC Los Angeles. The complaint describes the two as having been in a dating relationship.
Zaire Wade was arrested that morning and booked, then released the same day after posting a $50,000 bond. He was initially taken into custody on suspicion of domestic violence, criminal threats, and false imprisonment, but the formal complaint that Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman filed on July 9 charges him with one felony count of injuring a spouse, cohabitant, or dating partner under California Penal Code Section 273.5. An emergency protective order was issued for the alleged victim, requiring Wade to stay away from her.
One of the sharper points of friction on Thursday involved firearms. TMZ, citing what prosecutors told the judge, reported that police found and confiscated an unregistered firearm after the alleged incident, and that the court issued an order requiring Wade to surrender all of his firearms. Moghtanei, however, pushed back on the idea that a weapon is central to the case. He told reporters he could not comment on whether Wade currently possesses firearms, and said the prosecutor had asked for a declaration of no firearms that the defense would respond to in kind. He then added, for clarification, that the underlying case, from what he understood, does not involve an allegation of a firearm. That leaves prosecutors and the defense describing the gun question in very different terms, and it is a thread worth watching as the case moves forward.
Moghtanei also signaled that the defense views the state’s version of events as far from settled. He said the team had only just received initial discovery, so he could not go into the full relationship between the woman and his client. Pressed again on the plea, he repeated that Zaire Wade is not guilty and said the account is incomplete. He said the defense intends to litigate the case fully in the courthouse, that his client denies committing any crime and firmly contests the charge, and that the evidence will be addressed in court in the coming months. He cautioned that the case is likely to require several court appearances before any resolution is reached.
The attorney closed by noting a procedural move that will shape how visible Wade is during the proceedings. Moghtanei said he had filed a motion, which he described as typical with his clients, to allow the case to proceed without Wade physically appearing in court. He added that if Wade is required to appear, he will abide by every court order.
Zaire Wade is the oldest child of Dwyane Wade, the first ballot Hall of Famer who won three championships with the Miami Heat, earned 13 All Star selections, and now holds a minority ownership stake in the Utah Jazz. Like his father, Zaire pursued basketball, playing alongside Bronny James during the closely watched 2019 to 2020 season at Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth before continuing his career overseas, most recently with the Cape Town Tigers in the Basketball Africa League. Neither Zaire Wade nor representatives for the Wade family have publicly commented on the arrest or the charge.
The case remains in its early stages. A felony conviction under Penal Code Section 273.5 can carry a state prison sentence of two, three, or four years, along with possible fines and probation, but the filing of a charge is not proof of guilt, and Wade is presumed innocent unless and until proven otherwise in court. The next test comes at the preliminary hearing in September, where a judge will weigh whether prosecutors have enough evidence to send the case toward trial.
