Reuben Foster's girlfriend retracts domestic violence claim, says 49ers linebacker didn't injure her

Ryan Young
·Staff writer

The former girlfriend of San Francisco 49ers linebacker Reuben Foster said in a statement that she can prove Foster did not cause her injuries from an alleged incident in February.

Foster was accused of dragging his girlfriend and punching her in the head at their home in Los Gatos, California, leaving her bruised and with a ruptured eardrum. He was charged with felony domestic violence and attempting to prevent a victim from reporting a crime.

The former girlfriend released a statement through her attorney Wednesday where she said she can prove that Foster was not responsible for her injuries.

Reuben Foster’s girlfriend has recanted her initial domestic violence claim, and said that she can prove the 49ers linebacker didn’t injure her. (Getty Images)
Reuben Foster’s girlfriend has recanted her initial domestic violence claim, and said that she can prove the 49ers linebacker didn’t injure her. (Getty Images)

“[Foster] did not strike her, injure her or threaten her,” Stephanie Rickard, the former girlfriend’s attorney, said in the statement.

“She was extremely upset and told him if he broke up with her she would ‘trash his career.'”

The injuries, Rickard said, were the result of a fight with another woman, and that there is video of that confrontation. Rickard also said that the former girlfriend told prosecutors in the case that she wanted to recant her initial statement, but the district attorney’s office still filed the charges. She initially told investigators at the scene that Foster hit her eight to 10 times in the head.

Niners general manager John Lynch said Monday that if the charges are proven true that the linebacker would be cut from the team.

“I want to be very clear, abundantly clear, that if these charges are proven true, if Reuben did indeed hit this young lady, he won’t be a part of our organization going forward,” Lynch said. “That’s the standard we want on our team, that’s the standard we’re going to operate under.”

Foster, a first-round pick in the 2017 NFL draft, had a solid rookie campaign last season. He finished second on the team with 72 tackles in 10 games.

Foster is scheduled to appear in court Monday morning.

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