Why was Royce Reed potentially facing imprisonment? Exploring Dwight Howard’s ex’s legal battle

Dwight Howard's ex-wife Royce Reed nearly faced five years in prison. According to reports, Reed applied for participation in a pre-trial diversion program in Florida to evade imprisonment in a child neglect case.

The ex-NBA dancer was confronted with a third-degree felony charge. That might result in a five-year jail term following an incident where her child, who she shares with Howard, was reportedly involved in inappropriate conduct with another child.

However, after navigating through legal procedures in Orange County Criminal Court for over 17 months, Reed opted to join a program that could exonerate her from any blame.

Specifics about the program details or duration required for completion remain undisclosed. However, Royce is slated to make a court appearance on Dec. 6.

Administered by the Department of Corrections, the Orange County Pre-Trial Diversion initiative involves engaging in 100 hours of community service and attending educational sessions designed to address offense-related aspects.

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Dwight Howard avoids sexual assault charges

Dwight Howard's sexual assault allegations

Former NBA star Dwight Howard has refuted accusations of sexual assault, battery and false imprisonment lodged against him.

Stephen Harper filed a civil lawsuit against Howard in July, with no criminal charges brought against the ex-basketballer. Howard labeled the 2021 incident at his home in Atlanta's outskirts as consensual and sought dismissal of the case.

According to Harper's lawsuit, he connected with Howard through Instagram, exchanging explicit messages before planning to meet at his residence on Jul. 19, 2021. While en route to the Gwinnett County home, Howard purportedly enquired if another individual could join their sexual encounter, which Harper declined.

Harper asserts that on arriving at Dwight Howard's home, they were joined by a person identified as "Kitty," who appeared as a man dressed as a woman. Harper claims he resisted their advances but was coerced by Howard and Kitty into engaging in sexual activity.

Harper reported the alleged assault to Gwinnett County police almost a year later, in Jul. 2022. Subsequent attempts by police to arrange a formal interview with Harper were unsuccessful, leading to the suspension of the case due to the alleged victim's lack of cooperation, as per a police incident report.