A sigh of relief for Alabama fans and one of the program’s former standouts.
In a domestic violence case that has seen shades of manipulation, lies and confusion, a final verdict happened on Wednesday and it fell in favor of Reuben Foster. For those of you who are new to this situation, Foster was charged with three counts of felony domestic violence back in February after his girlfriend (ex-girlfriend now) Elissa Ennis alerted law enforcement in California on how she was struck eight to 10 times in the head, sustained hearing loss, suffered multiple bruises and was thrown out of the apartment that she and Foster lived in.
Foster, 24, was hit with badly abusing a victim, forcefully preventing the victim to call for help and having possession of an illegal assault weapon with a magazine. Should he have been convicted of these crimes, the former Alabama linebacker would have faced 11 years in prison.
The case took an unexpected turn when Ennis told her attorney that she lied about the incident, stating that she wanted to “F— up his career” if Foster was to end the relationship with her – which he did.
After going through court hearings, seeing Ennis’ lies unfold and hoping that his career with the San Francisco 49ers could still be intact, Judge Nona L. Klippen dropped all domestic violence charges against Foster – via tweet from Patrick Claybon of NFL Network.
Judge Nona L. Klippen dismisses the domestic violence charges against @49ers LB Reuben Foster. The weapons charge is set to be reduced and the pretrail dste is June 6th.
— Patrick Claybon (@PatrickClaybon) May 23, 2018
While the weapons charge is still in play, there is a good chance of it being reduced to a misdemeanor. In another tweet from Malki Kawa, Foster’s agent, he’s just ready to see the 31st overall pick of the 2017 NFL Draft back on the field and showing that he’s the best in the game.
We are pleased with the judge’s decision this afternoon to drop the charges against Reuben Foster. Excited to see our client back on the field with the 49ers and he’s ready to show that he is best linebacker in the league. #FreeTheInnocent #FRM
— malki kawa (@malkikawa) May 23, 2018
Unarguably, the best news came from 49ers general manager John Lynch.
Per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, he said Foster “will have the opportunity to re-join the team on Thursday. It has been made clear to Reuben that his place on the team is one that must continue to be earned.”
It was a close call Foster; however, he now has a learning experience that he can take to better himself and those around him as he looks to get back to what he loves.
Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
