Artem Chigvintsev explained his world was destroyed the day 911 was involved in a domestic incident between him and Nikki Garcia, which resulted in an arrest and mugshot.
The former Dancing With the Stars pro detailed how his celebrity made the altercation with his estranged wife “ruined [his] life” in an episode of The Glamorous Grind podcast.
CONTENT WARNING: DV
As seen on tv:
Artem explained how the media’s involvement in his domestic issues affected him. “Maybe [it’s] because I’ve been on TV, [but] it’s like you’re being judged by the media before anything.”
“I think the mugshot was the first time it really hit me” how public this was going to be. “It hit me just even being in the police station being arrested.”
“You’re watching this on TV, like in TV shows when people are getting arrested and all that stuff. But, experiencing it yourself … you’re just in a huge denial. It’s like, ‘Is this really happening? What is happening?”
More on Artem’s mugshot:
“But going back to the mugshot, I remember being in Target and I was buying stuff for Mateo. I think it was a Star magazine or something, and that was on the cover. My mugshot was on the cover of Star magazine.”
“When people see that mugshot, you are immediately guilty. There is nothing you can say or try to justify yourself and change their minds. When person has a mugshot, you’re guilty immediately. There is not even a question.”
“It’s weird because in this country I thought you’re innocent until proven guilty. Exactly that was not the case whatsoever.”
“We have this certain stigma to this. We say don’t judge a book by its cover, but we always do. It sucks. I definitely wish that was not the case.”
Artem maintains he did not physically harm Nikki:
“For me, [this incident] completely ruined everything for me, from every angle. It ruined my life completely.”
“The worst part about all of this, because DA dropped the case, clearly stating that there was nothing that they could possibly have charged me on.”
“In a criminal case, they must have sufficient evidence to prove beyond reasonable doubt that you know there was any domestic violence perpetrated by you.”
