Miami Dolphins wide receiver Brandon Marshall says he can't discuss the details of his wife's arrest on an aggravated battery charge, but he claims she didn't stab him in the stomach during an April dispute at their South Florida home.
"I did talk to the state attorney's office last month, and the one thing I made clear was my wife did not stab me. She didn't assault me," Marshall told the *South Florida Sun Sentinel* in a Friday story. "We were having a marital dispute that got heated, but it didn't happen as reported."
Marshall initially claimed he suffered his stomach wound when he slipped and fell onto a broken glass vase, but the police report noted there was "no blood within the immediate area to substantiate his claim." Marshall required surgery and a stay in intensive care.
Marshall's wife, Michi Nogami-Marshall, was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon after she allegedly stabbed her husband in the stomach with a kitchen knife April 22. She was arrested again in June after violating a restraining order during a "verbal dispute" at the couple's home in Southwest Ranches, Fla.
Despite the order requiring her to stay at least 500 feet from the home, Nogami-Marshall told deputies she had been living there while Marshall was out of town. When Marshall returned, an argument occurred, followed by a 911 call, but deputies said there was no sign of physical violence.
Marshall told the Sun Sentinel that while the incidents haven't been easy to deal with, he and his wife are trying.
"Like any young couple, we have issues and hope to work through it," Marshall said. "But it's hard to pick up the pieces and try to move forward with the distance that the situation has created. I'm hopeful that we can move forward because I love my wife."
Marshall initially refused to speak with authorities, and his attorney, Harvey A. Steinberg, said in May that the reason was the receiver disagreed with the no-contact order placed on his wife.
"(Marshall) has never felt threatened by his wife and misses her," Steinberg said then. "When (they) drop the no-contact order, he'll be more than willing to sit down and discuss this matter, bringing some clarity to this unfortunate misunderstanding."
According to the Sun Sentinel, Marshall's stomach has healed enough to allow him to heavily train -- on his own because of the ongoing NFL lockout -- in preparation for the upcoming season.
And training has provided Marshall a necessary distraction from the ongoing legal mess.
"Guys are trying to find their own thing to get an edge. I'm up running while everyone else is sleeping, so there's no way I'm going to bend over in a game," said Marshall, who missed two games last season with a hamstring injury. "I know I didn't have it last year, and that was part of my frustration. I couldn't physically do what I'm use to doing, but this is about getting back."
Marshall, who signed a five-year, $50 million contract with the Dolphins last year after spending four seasons with the Denver Broncos, caught 86 passes for 1,014 yards in 14 games with Miami.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
