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The assault trial of former New England Patriots receiver Stefon Diggs began Monday at Norfolk County District Court in Dedham, where the prosecution put a key witness on the stand to describe the alleged Dec. 2 incident. Jamila Adams, who goes by Mila, testified that Diggs slapped and choked her during a dispute at his home, and she described struggling to breathe during the alleged attack.
Adams said the confrontation began when Diggs came into her bedroom at his house. She told jurors that Diggs “smacked me with an open hand” before wrapping his arm around her neck and choking her, and she said the alleged assault left her struggling to breathe.
According to Adams’ testimony, the alleged attack came hours after the two exchanged angry texts over Adams being left off a trip to Miami that Diggs was taking with his entourage for a week. Adams said she then moved to block him, and she testified that he took his arms and came around her neck and began choking her.
As she described the episode, Adams said she did not record any video or photos showing redness on her neck and chest because she was busy trying to figure out her next steps. She told jurors she was in shock and said that because the pair had once been in a sexual relationship, she did not understand how someone she loved could “put hands on me,” while continuing to describe what she called an “assault.”
Defense attorneys sought to challenge Adams’ credibility during cross-examination, including by questioning details related to what she wanted to charge Diggs for cooking and by alleging she left out details in her police report. They also sought to underscore that there were no photos or video of the assault, and they presented video showing Adams visiting New York and smiling in one video and dancing in another.
In his opening statement, Diggs’ defense attorney Andrew Kettlewell told jurors that the alleged attack did not happen and urged them not to be influenced by Diggs’ status as a famous football player. Kettlewell said there were no medical records detailing the assault, and he said, “The assault that the Commonwealth described in their opening statement never happened. It did not happen.”
Kettlewell also told jurors that they would hear evidence suggesting Adams had a financial motive, describing testimony that her request started at $19,000 and increased over time to “quite a bit more” after charges were filed in late December. He said Adams was “furious” and wanted Diggs to “pay in every sense of that word,” and he urged jurors to treat Diggs as they would any other defendant.
On the prosecution side, Norfolk Assistant District Attorney Drew Virtue told jurors in his opening statement that Adams would testify Diggs slapped her and put her in a headlock that made it difficult to breathe, before throwing her onto a bed. Virtue told jurors, “It’s your job to determine what happened on Dec. 2,” and Judge Jeanmarie Carroll instructed jurors at times to disregard parts of Adams’ testimony that went beyond the scope of questions.
Diggs pleaded not guilty to a felony strangulation charge and a misdemeanor assault and battery charge stemming from the December incident. A jury was selected earlier Monday and received its instructions, and Diggs declined to speak to reporters when he arrived and also did not speak as he left court for the day.
Outside the courtroom, the trial unfolded against the backdrop of Diggs’ recent NFL career arc. Diggs signed a three-year, $69 million contract with the Patriots last year, had a 1,000-yard season in what became a revival after a knee injury derailed his 2024 season with the Houston Texans, and was released by the Patriots in March. Diggs has not signed with another team.