City attorney provides update on Puka Nacua's alleged biting incident

Editor's note: This story has been updated with new information.

A legal matter involving Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua and his allegedly biting a woman on the shoulder has been assigned for a City Attorney hearing, according to Ivor Pine, Deputy Director of Communications for the City Attorney’s Office.

Pine indicated by email on Monday, May 11, that a pretrial diversion is available to eligible individuals as an alternative to misdemeanor criminal prosecution. The successful completion would keep the matter from going to trial.

Charges are not filed against the respondent at this time, according to Pine, who added that the case stays open throughout the length of the statute of limitations.

It was not immediately clear whether Nacua is eligible for pretrial diversion.

"We feel validated that the city attorney is proceeding with its charge for battery to a hearing,'' Joseph Kar, who is representing the woman, said in a statement provided to USA TODAY Sports. "This dispels the false narrative Mr. Nacua and his crisis team tried to push to the press before Mr. Nacua entered a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility.  Those city attorney proceedings are not a formal criminal filing but have very serious implications for an accused defendant, especially for a famous football player in the prime of his career such as Makea 'Puka' Nacua."

It was not immediately clear if Nacua is eligible for pretrial diversion and what the specific criminal charges might be. The City Attorney handles only misdemeanors.

Nacua was accused of biting a woman on the shoulder after a group dinner in the Century City area of Los Angeles on Dec. 31, according to a civil lawsuit filed by the woman with the Superior Court of Los Angeles County March 25. The woman also accused Nacau of making an antisemitic statement during the dinner.

The woman is seeking damages for assault and battery, gender violence and negligence, according to the complaint.

"Of course, the city attorney's office hearing is different than the civil case, and we have no control over how the city attorney's office operates,'' Kar said. "While my client harbors no ill will toward Mr. Nacua, she demands that the City Attorney treat this matter very seriously, and she will be proceeding with all her civil claims and causes of action in the due course of her pending action.''

In the civil case, Kar said, discovery has started and a trial date is needed.

Nacua was voted First-Team All-Pro last season, his third with the Rams. He was voted Second-Team All-Pro in 2023, his rookie NFL season.