Zachery Ty Bryan pleads guilty to felony assault in domestic violence case 3 months after similar arrest
"Home Improvement" star Zachery Ty Bryan has pleaded guilty to a felony assault charge after a recent arrest for domestic violence, just three months after he was jailed for a similar incident.
Chris Parosa, Chief Deputy District Attorney of Lane County in Oregan, confirmed to USA TODAY Wednesday that Bryan, 42, "appeared in court this afternoon and pled guilty to felony assault in the fourth degree constituting domestic violence."
The actor reached a plea deal that included the dismissal of a second count of felony assault and a nearly two-year prison sentence.
Under the deal, Bryan was sentenced to seven days in jail, 36 months of supervised probation and standard domestic violence conditions, which include "no contact with the victim without the probation officer’s approval, treatment for alcohol/substance abuse issues at the direction of the probation officer, and no alcohol or drugs."
The actor will face 19 to 20 months in prison if he does not adhere to the terms of his probation.
"Mr. Bryan decided to accept this resolution and admit that he recklessly caused physical injury to his domestic partner to avoid further trauma to his family so they could move on and heal," his attorney John Kolego told The Hollywood Reporter. In a statement to The Wrap, Kolego added: "He believes this is the manner he could best resolve this to avoid further trauma to his family."
USA TODAY has reached out to reps for Bryan.
While the victim was not named in the case, Bryan's fiancée Johnnie Faye Cartwright told The Wrap, "It’s a horrible situation that’s going to be spun in so many ways. I’ve learned firsthand the truth will never align with what’s been put out there. I ask everyone to please be respectful of our privacy for the sake of the children and our families so the healing process can begin."
In July, Bryan was was arrested by the Eugene Police Department in Oregon after officers "received report of a physical dispute between a male and adult female at a north Eugene residence," the department's public information officer Melinda McLaughlin shared in a statement on July 31.
The former child star, who played Tim Allen's oldest son Brad Taylor on "Home Improvement" from 1991-99, was booked in Lane County Jail with a charge of assault in the fourth degree.
Bryan's latest assault charges come two years after he was convicted of menacing and assault in the fourth degree constituting domestic violence.
He was sentenced to three years of bench probation with multiple conditions, including partaking in a batterer intervention program and having no contact with the victim, Lane County District Attorney Patricia Perlow told USA TODAY in February 2021.
Six other charges related to the October 2020 incident – harassment, coercion, strangulation, interference with making a report and second counts of menacing and assault in the fourth degree – were dismissed.
In October 2020, the Eugene Police Department said officers were dispatched to an apartment after a reported physical dispute. They found Bryan sitting outside and his then-girlfriend, now-fiancée Cartwright at a neighboring apartment.
Bryan reportedly assaulted Cartwright, impeded her breathing and took her phone away when she tried to call 911, police said. She declined medical assistance. Bryan was booked into Lane County jail shortly thereafter.
The actor addressed that arrest in June in a comprehensive profile with The Hollywood Reporter on his legal trouble, fraud allegations and career.
Bryan said the incident was "so blown out of proportion" and that the couple had been fighting due to the secrecy of their relationship while he was married to Carly Matros, with whom he shares four children.
'Home Improvement' star Zachery Ty Bryanarrested for domestic violence (again)
"We didn’t even really get that physical. We got really loud. We were screaming, and because we were in a townhome that had (thin walls), everybody could hear. Johnnie was, at the time, just really upset about my situation," he told the outlet. "At the end of the day, (the police) throw a bunch of counts at you because they ultimately want you to plead to something."
Bryan added: "I could’ve fought it … but that’s more stress and drama. I got two misdemeanors and called it a day."
Bryan and Cartwright have three children.
Zachery Ty Bryan:'Home Improvement' star convicted on two counts in domestic violence case
Contributing: Hannah Yasharoff, Kim Willis, USA TODAY; and the Associated Press