Family Matters alum Darius McCrary has been released from jail two months after his arrest near the U.S.-Mexico border.
“Over the last four years, Mr. McCrary’s fight for justice and truth has been painted as an attempt to shirk his responsibilities to his child,” the former child actor’s public defender, Paulette Loftin, said in a statement shared with Us Weekly on Tuesday, December 9. “The resolution reached today makes it clear that family does matter and that it always has.”
Loftin continued, “This resolution allows Mr. McCrary to correct the misleading narrative and put this matter behind him.”
McCrary, 49, was arrested by United States Border Patrol in California in October and brought in on a “fugitive arrest,” Us confirmed at the time. He was being held in a San Diego jail without bail.
A rep for McCrary told TMZ that the actor’s arrest was due to a warrant out of Michigan for a missed court appearance regarding his failure to pay child support.
A rep for McCrary addressed the arrest in a statement to Us, claiming he was “picked up at the Border of Mexico because he was partnering with a real estate developer that is building homes for the homeless in Tijuana Mexico.”
“Darius was doing a good deed when he discovered he had a felony warrant at the Border of Mexico for a missed court appearance,” the statement continued. “The missed court appearance was for an ongoing child support dispute whereas Oakland County mailed the notice to appear to Darius PO BOX giving him only 3 days to appear in Michigan Court. Unfortunately Darius had Covid therefore did not check his PO Box until the day after his court date. However, he immediately notified the Judge with a doctor’s note diagnosis of Covid.”
Following a court hearing on Monday, McCrary’s rep, Ann Barlow, confirmed that the “It’s Real” singer entered a no-contest plea to all five felony charges. He will return to court for sentencing in February 2026.
“We are grateful that Mr. McCrary will be home for Christmas to be with his family. While today marks meaningful progress, his fight for justice is far from over,” Barlow said in a statement shared with Us.
Us exclusively reported in October that the Next Day Air star is facing up to four years in jail after he was charged with four felony charges over alleged unpaid child support months before his arrest. His rep told Us at the time that McCrary has always supported his son and has been part of his life when given the opportunity.
In August 2024, McCrary filed to have the bench warrant for his arrest, issued on June 24, 2024, due to a missed court hearing, dropped. His lawyer stated that McCrary had a “bonding, caring, fit and loving relationship with his three minor children, including the one involved in this case.”
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McCrary was previously married to Juliette M. Vann from 2005 to 2006, Karrine Steffans from 2009 to 2011 and Tammy Brawner from 2014 to 2017. The identities of his three children have remained private.
“McCrary, a California resident and pillar of the community, was not present for the arraignment on the information on June 24, 2024, because he did not receive the mailed notice to a PO box, miles from his residence that is not checked daily as opposed to his residence, in time to appear, nor did he receive an email as usually done” by the court, his lawyer added.
The filing also claimed that McCrary had COVID-19 at the time of his missed court appearance.
“If he traveled from California to Michigan on June 24, 2024, he would have put the public around him, including other travelers on the airplane, individuals in the courtroom and others at risk of contracting COVID from exposure to him,” the filing read.
