Jarrod Schulz, a longtime star of A&E’s popular reality series Storage Wars, made headlines in recent weeks after an alleged altercation with ex-partner Brandi Passante. The two had previously had been life partners and had shared a business together, but had split by the time the last season of Storage Wars was filming. Now, Schulz is denying that he pushed Passante while gearing up for the trial that's landed him in the news.
According to reports that came out in May of this year, Jarrod Schulz and Brandi Passante had been at the same bar in Orange County, CA in April when they got into a heated exchange. Reportedly, Passante wanted Schulz to leave the bar. He didn’t comply and allegedly pushed her during the exchange that followed. Though Schulz had left the scene by the time police had arrived, they later caught up with the Storage Wars star and charged him with one count of misdemeanor domestic violence battery.
Now, Schulz is preparing for his day in court and he says he’s not guilty. Jarrod Schulz’s lawyer Benjamin Arsenian recently spoke with TMZ to deny the reality star had pushed Brandi Passante. His lawyer says no plea deal will be agreed to unless it “results in a complete dismissal,” though it's worth mentioning no plea deal currently seems to even be on the table.
Meanwhile, reports indicate that witnesses have varying statements about what happened, with one alleging Schulz had been sitting on a barstool during the alleged altercation with his ex. Another said a shoulder bump reportedly happened. The official police report indicated there were no physical after effects on Brandi Passante’s body following the alleged altercation, but Passante herself has not spoken publicly about the incident.
Jarrod Schulz is expected to go to trial on the July 12. Meanwhile, he’s been in the news quite a bit over the past few days. Some reports have even indicated he may no longer be a part of Storage Wars should that series move forward into Season 14.
The two actually split two years ago but did not talk openly about it for some time after, they did appear in Season 13 of Storage Wars and it was on the show where the news became public knowledge. The latest set of episodes wrapped up their airing on cable back in May. Those episodes did still feature some of exchanges between Jarrod Schulz and Brandi Passante that did include some of the banter that originally made them mainstays on TV. Shulz and Passante share two children together.
However, should the show move forward, reports from set have indicated that the two were making others uncomfortable even prior to the alleged altercation. The network has not specifically commented yet; regardless, no matter what ends up happening with the court case, some changes may be coming to A&E’s Storage Wars.
