Houston Dynamo’s goalkeeper Tyler Deric has been barred from contacting his girlfriend after he allegedly headbutted her last month.
In a decision ruled on Friday, County Court at Law Judge Robin Brown set the conditions for bond while the misdemeanor assault case is still pending.
Deric, 29, was arrested on October 31 for allegedly using his head to hit the woman, and made $1,000 bail.
Houston Dynamo’s goalkeeper Tyler Deric has been barred from contacting his girlfriend after he allegedly headbutted her last month
Attorney Allen Tanner asserted his client’s innocence and added that this was the second time that the woman had filed charges. She dropped the case the first time.
‘He’s not guilty and we’ll take it to trial if we need to,’ Tanner said to the Chron.
‘It’s a shame he’s not able to play in the play-offs, for something he didn’t do.’
The goalkeeper has been suspended from all team activities and is not even allowed to work out at the team’s training facility.
Deric, 29, was arrested on October 31 for allegedly using his head to hit the woman, and made $1,000 bail
Major League Soccer is also conducting its own investigation to determine if any additional measures need to be done.
The same girlfriend accused Deric of pushing her against a bed frame, hitting her nose with his palm and dragging her out his apartment on December 18, 2015.
The soccer player was arrested 12 days later and photographs of the injuries were taken by police, according to court records.
The goalkeeper has been suspended from all team activities and is not even allowed to work out at the team’s training facility
Eventually dropping the charges, the woman consented to a video shown on Tanner’s phone where she said she made up the details. She also added that she was made at Deric but felt bad to have put him in that predicament.
At the time, the Harris County District Attorney’s office didn’t press charges and Deric reached an agreement with the DA’s office to go to relationship counseling.
This current case is being assigned to the family criminal law division at the office and they specialize in prosecuting attackers even after victims recant their statements.
Victims who change their story – often a sign of violence in abusive relationships – present a challenge for prosecutors.
Deric was also charged in 2012 for misdemeanor assault of a public servent when he threw a police officer to the ground when that officer tried to arrest him.
Charges were dismissed when a Harris County grand jury couldn’t find enough evidence for the case to go on.