ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) A judge dismissed battery charges Tuesday against New Orleans Hornets guard Darrell Armstrong, who was on trial for striking an officer as she tried to escort him off the street.

Judge Bob Wattles said there was no way a prosecutor could prove Armstrong intended to strike the officer when he pushed her hand away.

The dismissal came on the trial's second day. Armstrong's attorney had argued the NBA player accidentally hit Officer Teresa Joyce, swinging his arm in reaction to her touching him.

But Joyce testified Monday that Armstrong ``reacted very violently'' when she tried to remove him from the street outside a nightclub on July 7.

Armstrong, who played nine seasons with the Orlando Magic before signing with the Hornets over the offseason, had been charged with felony battery on an officer and misdemeanor resisting arrest without violence. He had faced probation to a maximum of five years in prison if he had been convicted.