Pittsburgh Steeler running back Chris Rainey (pictured), who was arrested Thursday morning and charged with simple battery (dating violence) for reportedly slapping his unidentified girlfriend around, has lost his job over the incident, reports NFL.com.
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Just hours after the arrest hit the media, Rainey, the fifth-round 2012 draft pick, was let go by his team. According to the team’s general manager, Kevin Colbert, “Under the circumstances and due to this conduct, Chris will no longer be a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers.”
Rainey and his girlfriend supposedly fought over his cell phone. The unidentified female reportedly got in to Rainey’s roommate’s vehicle. A witness told police that Rainey then approached the woman on the passenger side of the car and began tugging at her to get out. He was also reportedly seen slapping the woman across the face with an open hand.
According to NFL.com, the police report adds:
Both Rainey and the female victim then fell to the ground. The victim was able to run away, but Rainey chased after her because his cellphone was in a bag the victim was carrying. Rainey grabbed the bag again and they both fell to the ground again. Neither party suffered visible injuries from the encounter. Multiple witnesses confirmed the incident.
Even though Rainey’s professional career looked bright, the team has a zero-tolerance policy in place for such violent behavior from the young man. It appears that back in 2010, Rainey was arrested for aggravated stalking when his unnamed girlfriend fell asleep and missed a call from him. The 24-year-old allegedly got upset and went to pay his girl a visit. The couple reportedly talked for 10 minutes, then the woman asked Rainey to leave. While Rainey did leave, he reportedly sent her a death threat via text which read, “Time to die.”
When the unidentified girlfriend summoned police about the threat, they responded by coming over to her home. The woman then called Rainey with police on the line and officers heard him tell her, “Wait and see what happens when they leave.” Rainey was arrested and admitted to the text but denied ever making the threatening statement to his girlfriend via phone, even though police witnessed the call.
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