Charges Dropped Against ABC Star Accused of Beating His Wife
In 2010, Russian-born Broadway professional dancer Artem Chigvintsev took a turn around the dance floor and blew the judges away on the BBC show Strictly Come Dancing.
It was the show’s eighth season, and it was Chigvintsev’s first as a professional dancer, where he was paired with actress Kara Tointin. Chigvintsev didn’t let first-season nerves get to him. He and Tointon spent the entire season wowing the judges and winning the coveted Glitterball Trophy.
Five years after his Strictly Come Dancing debut, Chigvintzsev flew across the pond and became a professional dancer on the Strictly spinoff and hit ABC series Dancing with the Stars.
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Since his Dancing with the Stars debut in season 19 — where he was paired with Back to the Future (1985) star Lea Thompson — he has appeared eleven more times.
In season 25, he was paired with former professional wrestler and Total Divas star Nikki Bella (real name Nikki Garcia). Sparks flew from the moment they met, and the two continued their relationship after the season ended. They welcomed their son Matteo in 2020 and were married in 2022. Unfortunately, their happily ever after was not meant to be.
On August 29, Chigvintsev was arrested by police and taken to the Napa County Jail on charges of corporal injury to a spouse. Corporal injury to a spouse is considered a felony in the state of California and means that the injuries were intentionally inflicted.
Despite the serious nature of the charges, the Napa County District Attorney’s office has declined to pursue the matter. In a press release, Napa County District Attorney Allison Haley said that she declined to file charges after “a thorough review of the criminal investigation.”
“While we take every arrest seriously and stand firmly against domestic violence, we have an ethical obligation to only file charges when supported by the evidence. We are required to prove any and every criminal charge ‘beyond a reasonable doubt’ which is the highest standard in the American criminal justice system. If the available evidence doesn’t rise to this level of proof, then we cannot ethically file charges.”
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However, Ms. Haley did say that just because they were not filing charges right now, they may do so in the future. There is a three-year statute of limitations in the state, and if more information comes to light in the future, misdemeanor or felony charges are still on the table.
Nikki Garcia has been staying out of the limelight since her husband’s arrest, but she has made some decisions about their marriage. Just two weeks after his arrest, Garcia filed for divorce and asked for primary legal and physical custody of their four-year-old son.
Chigvintzev did not take the filing lightly. He has requested joint custody and, in a stunning move, asked the courts to grant him spousal support.
Serious Prior Accusations
This is not the first time that Chigvintsev has been accused of being violent with a woman.
In 2012, Chigvintsev was paired with television presenter Fern Britton on Strictly Come Dancing. The duo ended up coming in tenth place, but it wasn’t the happy experience Britton was hoping for.
Three years after her appearance on the show, Ms. Britton did an interview with The Huffington Post U.K., and she levied some serious allegations against the professional dancer. She claimed that Chigvintsev would shove her, kick her, and even threaten to kill her.
“He would look at my feet and just kick me or shove me,” she revealed.
She added: “He was like, ‘Shut your face. Go home before I kill you’.
“I would say, ‘Oh please just kill me, it would be easier’. Or what was his other one? ‘If you go for a cup of tea now, I will blow off like an atomic bomb.’ I thought, well I won’t correct him on that one.”
Chigvintsev denied all of Britton’s claims and said that he treated Ms. Britton with “respect and genuine care.” He said that her claims went against “everything I believe in and the person I am.”
Chigvintsev was not brought back for season 33 of Dancing with the Stars, and it is unknown if he will be invited back for later seasons.
With the charges against him dropped, do you think Dancing with the Stars should invite Artem Chigvintsev back for future seasons? Let us know in the comments.
