Gervonta “Tank” Davis: Warrant, Lawsuit, and Prison Time

Gervonta “Tank” Davis’s legal troubles now stretch across two states and both criminal and civil court. In Florida, the undefeated boxer faces a felony attempted kidnapping trial set for May 26, 2026, over an October 2025 incident with his ex-girlfriend at a Miami Gardens strip club. In Maryland, an active arrest warrant, issued after he allegedly violated the probation imposed for a 2020 hit-and-run, could send him to prison on a suspended two-year sentence if his probation is revoked.¹²

The Miami Attempted Kidnapping Case

The most serious charge Davis faces stems from an incident at Tootsie’s Cabaret in Miami Gardens on October 27, 2025. Prosecutors say Davis confronted his ex-girlfriend, Courtney Rossel, who was working at the club, grabbed her by the back of the head and throat, and forcefully moved her through the club, down a stairway, and toward a parking garage. Rossel sustained bruising to her left arm before breaking free and running to coworkers.³⁴

An arrest warrant was issued on January 14, 2026, charging Davis with battery, false imprisonment, and attempted kidnapping. The U.S. Marshals fugitive task force and Miami Gardens police spent two weeks locating him. He was taken into custody on January 28, 2026, in Miami’s Design District, booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, and released the following night on bond with a no-contact order.⁵⁶ He pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors later dropped the false imprisonment charge as redundant, leaving the felony attempted kidnapping charge and a misdemeanor battery charge.¹ In late March 2026, eight surveillance clips recorded at 3:51 a.m. on the night of the incident were shown in court. According to those clips, Davis grabbed Rossel by the neck and hair and pushed her through a hallway, a kitchen service-elevator area, and down a set of stairs into a parking lot before releasing her.⁷

Davis’s defense attorney, Simon Steckel, moved to dismiss the case, arguing that prosecutors had ignored “exculpatory evidence,” calling the case a “shakedown,” and noting that Rossel had spent nine hours with Davis after the incident “with no fear, with no problems.” The judge denied the motion. Trial is scheduled to begin May 26, 2026.⁸

The Active Maryland Probation Warrant

Davis’s arrest in Florida triggered a probation violation back in Maryland, where he is still under supervision from his 2020 hit-and-run case. On February 2, 2026, Baltimore City Circuit Court Judge Althea M. Handy issued an arrest warrant. Davis’s attorney, Hunter Pruette, asked the judge to recall the warrant and issue a summons with GPS monitoring instead, arguing that Davis had posted bond in Miami and complied with all release conditions. The warrant was recalled on February 10.⁹¹

The reprieve did not hold. Judge Handy issued a new arrest warrant on April 24, 2026. Davis’s attorneys moved to recall it, and on May 22, 2026, the court denied that motion, leaving the warrant active. If arrested on that warrant, Davis will be held without bond.¹

This is not his first probation problem. In March 2025, Judge Handy extended Davis’s probation by 18 months after he admitted to traveling out of state without permission.¹⁰

How Much Prison Time He Could Face

The biggest exposure comes from the Florida case. Under Florida law, kidnapping is a first-degree felony punishable by up to life in prison.¹¹ Davis is charged with attempted kidnapping, which carries a lower maximum; the specific statutory cap for the attempt is not stated in the available reporting. The misdemeanor battery charge carries substantially less exposure.

Separately, if Judge Handy revokes his Maryland probation, Davis could be ordered to serve the suspended portion of his original hit-and-run sentence: two years plus 60 days.²

The Civil Lawsuit and Dismissed Countersuit

Rossel also sued Davis in civil court in October 2025, alleging battery, aggravated battery, false imprisonment, kidnapping, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.⁶ At a March 31, 2026, hearing, the judge ruled that the surveillance footage supported Rossel’s request to pursue $5 million in punitive damages.⁷

Davis filed a $20 million countersuit in March 2026, alleging Rossel provoked the confrontation to jeopardize his upcoming exhibition against Jake Paul and then demanded $1.1 million to drop the matter. His filing called it a “calculated shakedown.” Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge Milton Hirsch threw out the countersuit on May 18, 2026, after a brief hearing. The lawsuit against Davis remains active.¹²¹³

The 2020 Baltimore Hit-and-Run That Started the Probation

The Maryland probation traces back to the early morning of November 5, 2020, when Davis ran a red light in a Lamborghini Urus at Martin Luther King Jr. and Washington boulevards in Baltimore and struck a Toyota Solara. Four people were hospitalized, including a pregnant woman, Jyair Smith, who suffered a knee injury prosecutors said would affect her for life. Davis fled the scene in a separate vehicle.¹⁴¹⁵

In February 2023, Davis pleaded guilty to four traffic offenses, including leaving the scene of an accident involving bodily injury and driving on a revoked license.¹⁵ On May 5, 2023, Judge Handy sentenced him to two years plus 60 days in prison, suspending all of it except 90 days of home detention, plus three years of supervised probation, 200 hours of community service “not in boxing,” a Mothers Against Drunk Driving panel, and a Shock Trauma program.² Davis later spent nearly six weeks in jail for violating the terms of that home detention.¹⁰

Prior Domestic Violence Arrests

Before the Miami case, Davis had been arrested three separate times on domestic violence allegations in Florida. All three were resolved without a conviction.

February 2020, Coral Gables: charged with simple battery domestic violence after being captured on video grabbing the mother of his daughter near her neck at a University of Miami charity basketball game. The case was discharged in December 2022.¹⁶
December 2022, Parkland: charged with battery causing bodily harm. The alleged victim later recanted through her attorney.¹⁷
July 2025, Doral: arrested on misdemeanor battery from a June 2025 report by the mother of his two children. The charge was dropped in August 2025.¹⁸

What This Has Done to His Boxing Career

Davis holds a professional record of 30-0-1 with 28 knockouts, but the legal cases have stopped him from fighting.¹⁹ A planned November 2025 exhibition against Jake Paul on Netflix was canceled after Rossel’s civil suit was filed.⁶ In January 2026, the World Boxing Association moved Davis from active lightweight champion to “champion in recess,” citing his legal issues and inactivity and noting he had defended his title only twice in the previous three years.²⁰

As of late May 2026, Davis has no fights on the calendar, is wanted in Maryland on an active arrest warrant, and faces a criminal trial in Miami-Dade County. Rossel’s civil suit against him is still pending.²¹

1
ESPN. Gervonta Davis Wanted Maryland Alleged Probation Violation
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WBAL-TV. Boxer Gervonta Davis Sentenced
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NBC Miami. Boxer Gervonta Davis Arrested Domestic Violence Miami Gardens
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CBS News Miami. Gervonta Tank Davis Boxer Arrest Warrant Domestic Violence
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The Guardian. Boxing Star Gervonta Davis Arrested on Kidnapping Charges After Two-Week Manhunt
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USA Today. Gervonta Tank Davis Police Custody Arrest
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Yahoo Sports. New Video Shows Gervonta Tank Davis Grabbing Woman by the Neck and Hair in Domestic Violence Case
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NBC Miami. Judge Won’t Drop Domestic Violence Case Against Boxer Gervonta Davis as New Video Surfaces
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The Baltimore Banner. Baltimore Arrest Warrant Boxer Gervonta Tank Davis
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Ring Magazine. Gervonta Davis Allegedly Violated Probation, Wanted in Maryland
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Florida Legislature. Florida Statutes Section 787.01 – Kidnapping
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Boxing Insider. Gervonta Davis Files $20 Million Countersuit Claims Accuser Torpedoed Jake Paul Payday
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The Baltimore Banner. Boxer Gervonta Davis Countersuit Against Ex-Girlfriend Dismissed
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The Guardian. Gervonta Davis Sentencing Hearing Baltimore Hit-and-Run
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ESPN. Gervonta Davis Pleads Guilty in Hit-and-Run Case
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ESPN. Gervonta Davis Arrest History
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Washington Post. Gervonta Davis Arrested
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WSLS. Gervonta Tank Davis Domestic Violence Charge Dropped in South Florida
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beIN Sports. Gervonta Davis Will Return to Prison After Violating His Probation
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Fight News. Gervonta Tank Davis Stripped of WBA Lightweight Title
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Baltimore Sun. More Legal Troubles for Baltimore Boxer Gervonta Tank Davis