Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer, accused of assault, has hearing over restraining order delayed

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer might be called to the witness stand next month after being accused of assaulting a woman at his home this year in Pasadena.

The subject came up in court Friday as part of a scheduled hearing that will determine whether a restraining order against him will remain in force. But that hearing was delayed Friday until Aug. 2. When it resumes, Bauer could answer some questions on the stand or invoke his Fifth Amendment right not to testify against himself.

Bauer, 30, appeared in court for the hearing Friday, along with the woman who said he choked her unconscious during two sexual encounters in April and May. Each sat about six feet apart in court but did not testify before the hearing was continued. Bauer's attorney, Shawn Holley, said she needed more time to evaluate recently disclosed evidence.

"There is a pending criminal investigation," Holley said to Superior Court Judge Dianna Gould-Saltman. "For that reason, I and Mr. (Jon) Fetterolf (Bauer's agent) have advised Mr. Bauer not to testify about any of the substance of this matter. My question is ... does the court intend to have him take the stand and invoke?"

Holley suggested Bauer could invoke the Fifth Amendment privately "in chambers" instead of open court and also suggested the judge "ask him at the appropriate time whether or not he intends to follow my advice."

"Having him take the stand and invoke with each question has no probative value at all (and would be) nothing more than a prejudicial exercise given the media attention in this matter," Holley said.

An attorney for the woman said, "Under civil law, he does have to take the stand."

"He does have to invoke his right with respect to each question, so we would ask that he do so," said the attorney, Lisa Helfend Meyer. "There may be some questions that answers might not tend to incriminate."

The judge indicated Meyer was correct.

Bauer has been on paid administrative leave since July 2 as investigations continue by Pasadena police and Major League Baseball, which recently extended his leave until July 27. His representatives have denied the allegations and said his relations with the woman were consensual.

The court granted the woman's request for a restraining order against Bauer in June; at that time, she said Bauer also punched her during their second encounter in May. But the court granted her restraining order request only on a temporary basis and was set to hear evidence Friday on whether the restraining order would remain. After a series of delays, the judge moved the proceedings back.

"The temporary restraining order will remain in full force and effect until the proceeding is completed," the judge said Friday.

That proceeding now is set to play out over several days in August, starting Aug. 2 and 3. Multiple witnesses are expected to testify, including the person who examined the woman for evidence of sexual assault.

The judge continued the hearing after Holley said her team wasn't provided key information until recently.

"We were prepared to go forward on the cross-examination of (the woman), and we are not prepared to go forward on anything else because we were not provided anything else until last night," Holley said.

USA TODAY's policy is not to identify individuals who allege sexual crimes without their permission.

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According to the woman, the two met on Instagram and then had two sexual encounters at Bauer's home in Pasadena. After her second encounter with him, the woman went to the emergency room at a hospital near her home in San Diego and was diagnosed with an acute head injury and assault by manual strangulation, according to court filings.

She included photos of facial injuries in court documents and said she waited to pursue a restraining order because she wanted to see how the criminal investigation would proceed and was concerned that he had not been arrested or charged.

Bauer’s representatives noted the woman’s request for a restraining order in June was taken at “face value” without him being given an opportunity to respond until this pending hearing.

In court documents, the woman said she told San Diego police after her hospital visit that her injuries were the result of “rough sex,” and said she tried to downplay what happened “out of concern for my privacy and what my statements might lead to.”

“I am terrified that he will again invite me to his home or how he will respond if I say no,” she said in court records filed in June. “I want Trevor to cease contacting me, entirely. I must ensure that he does not come to my home, or anywhere near me.”

In the meantime, Bauer’s future in baseball remains uncertain after signing a three-year, $102 million contract with the Dodgers in February. Last year, he won the Cy Young Award with the Cincinnati Reds. This year, he’s facing a potential lengthy suspension under baseball’s domestic violence and sexual assault policy.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. E-mail: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trevor Bauer, accused of assault, has hearing delayed until August