Marc RaimondiFeb 9, 2026, 10:05 AM ET
- Marc Raimondi's first year covering the Falcons was 2024, but it wasn't his first year at ESPN. He joined the company in 2019 and was a top combat sports reporter. He also covered professional wrestling and wrote the book "Say Hello to the Bad Guys: How Pro Wrestling's New World Order Changed America," which was published by Simon & Schuster in 2025. Raimondi also worked for the New York Post and Newsday, beginning in 2009, covering high school and college sports, plus the NFL, NFL, MLB and NHL.
Atlanta Falcons rookie James Pearce Jr. allegedly crashed his vehicle into one being driven by WNBA player Rickea Jackson multiple times and struck a police officer with the vehicle while evading arrest, according to the criminal complaint obtained by ESPN from the Miami-Dade County state attorney's office.
Pearce was arrested Saturday in Florida on five felony charges, including aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, aggravated stalking and aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer. He was released from the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on Sunday night after posting a $20,500 bond.
Jackson, who plays for the Los Angeles Sparks, told police that she saw Pearce following her car in a white Lamborghini SUV on Saturday morning. When Jackson's car stopped at a red light, Pearce got out of his vehicle and attempted to open her car door on the driver's side.
Jackson accelerated away and started driving toward the Doral (Florida) Police Department. Pearce re-entered his vehicle and continued following her. During the drive to the police station, Jackson said Pearce "intentionally collided into the rear of her vehicle" with his SUV. As she got to the intersection near the police station, Jackson said Pearce cut her off with his car and when she attempted to back out and get away, he used his car to collide with hers head-on.
The affidavit stated that photographs of Jackson's vehicle showed damage consistent with her account.
Doral police officers responded to the scene after Jackson called. According to the affidavit, they saw Pearce standing on the outside of his SUV on the driver's side with the door open. An officer pulled a gun on Pearce and ordered him to get on the floor. Pearce got back in his car and closed the door. The officer opened the door, but Pearce shut it again, locked it and drove away.
While Pearce was driving away, the SUV struck an officer in his left knee. The affidavit describes it as "intentionally in an attempt to evade arrest."
Police followed Pearce's vehicle in cars until Pearce crashed at an intersection. Pearce then got out of his car and fled on foot. Officers were able to catch up with him, though Pearce "began to resist arrest by tensing his arms and not allowing officers to apprehend him."
The affidavit says Pearce was "triaged on scene" and later taken to Jackson West Medical Center for further assessment. He spent Saturday night and most of the day Sunday in custody at Turner Guilford Knight Corrections Center.
Pearce is facing two felony counts of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and a felony count of aggravated stalking. Other charges include fleeing and eluding police officers and aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer -- also felonies -- and a misdemeanor count of resisting an officer without violence to his person.
Jackson told police that she and Pearce dated for about three years, but recently ended their relationship. Jackson blocked Pearce's phone number to avoid contact with him, but he used an alternate number to text her. A Friday afternoon text from Jackson told Pearce to leave her alone and that she wanted nothing to do with him. The text messages from Pearce continued through Friday into Saturday morning. Jackson showed the messages to police.
The Falcons issued a statement Saturday night saying they were "gathering more information."
Pearce, who finished third in AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year voting at NFL Honors on Thursday, set a Falcons rookie record with a team-leading 10½ sacks in 2025.
