49ers’ McDonald won’t face domestic violence charges

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San Jose, CA (SportsNetwork.com) – San Francisco 49ers defensive end Ray McDonald will not face charges of domestic violence stemming from an August arrest.

The Santa Clara County district attorney’s office on Monday declined to file charges in the case because of insufficient evidence.

McDonald was booked into Santa Clara County jail on Aug. 31 for “inflicting injury on a spouse or cohabitant,” according to the Santa Clara Department of Corrections. He was later released from custody after posting bail.

According to Monday’s statement from the Santa Clara County D.A., there were conflicting versions of the incident, a lack of verifiable eyewitnesses and a significant lack of cooperation by the alleged victim, McDonald’s fiancee — later referred to as ‘Jane Doe’ in the district attorney’s statement.

“All domestic violence complaints deserve our concern, sensitivity and careful review,” said district attorney Jeff Rosen on Monday. “After our thorough review of all the facts, we do not have evidence sufficient to convince a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. McDonald committed a crime against Jane Doe.”

The district attorney said the incident occurred in the early morning of Aug. 31 during a birthday party McDonald threw for himself at his San Jose home. An investigation determined that, during an argument, Jane Doe struck McDonald, who then tried to physically restrain her. The two scuffled.

McDonald then forcibly attempted to remove her from the home and called a San Jose police officer, saying he needed to get “a female” out of his house. Two minutes later, Jane Doe called 911, resulting in McDonald’s arrest.

The legal and factual analysis by the district attorney’s office determined the incident consisted of a physical struggle between two parties, each party blaming the other, no verifiable eyewitness accounts, and no one left with significant injuries.

McDonald’s arrest came just days after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell instituted harsher penalties for players and league personnel over domestic violence offenses, a response to criticism over the two-game suspension he initially handed Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice for an altercation with his now-wife in a New Jersey casino back in February.

The 49ers, despite some criticism, allowed McDonald to continue playing during the investigation. He has started all nine games for the team this season.

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