Longhorns Country

Travis County DA Dismisses Charges Against Fired Longhorns Coach Chris Beard

The felony assault charges against former Texas Longhorns coach Chris Beard have been dismissed by the Travis County District Attorney.

Matt Galatzan

Former Texas Longhorns head coach Chris Beard was fired in January, following a December arrest on third-degree felony assault charges that stemmed from an incident with his fiance at their residence.

And on Wednesday, those charges were officially dropped by Travis Country District Attorney, Jose Garza. 

"After a careful and thorough review of the evidence, recent public statements, and considering Ms. (Randi) Trew’s wishes, our office has determined that the felony offense cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt," Garza's office said in a statement.

Days after the incident, Beard's fiance, Randi Trew, released a statement, retracting her allegations.

"Chris and I are deeply saddened that we have brought negative attention upon our family, friends, and the University of Texas, among others," she said. "As Chris' fiancé and biggest supporter, I apologize for the role I played in this unfortunate event. I realize that my frustration, when breaking his glasses, initiated a physical struggle between Chris and myself. Chris did not strangle me, and I told that to law enforcement that evening. Chris has stated that he was acting in self-defense, and I do not refute that. I do not believe Chris was trying to intentionally harm me in any way. It was never my intent to have him arrested or prosecuted. We appreciate everyone's support and prayers during this difficult time."

Beard was in the midst of his second season with the Longhorns and was arrested last month on felony assault charges resulting from a domestic violence incident with his fiance. 

The Longhorns have since been under the direction of Rodney Terry, who is now the acting head coach for the remainder of the season.

Beard, 49, was in his second season as the head coach of the Longhorns and had led Texas to a 29-13 record.

Before his suspension, Beard had the Longhorns sitting at 7-1 overall and ranked as the No. 6 team in the country.

The Longhorns, who have gone 13-5 and rank No. 6 in the country under Terry, will take the floor again on Saturday afternoon against the Oklahoma Sooners at 1 pm at the Moody Center.

You can follow Matt Galatzan on Twitter @MattGalatzan

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Matt Galatzan
MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan is the Managing Editor and Publisher of Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI and a long-time member of the Football Writer’s Association of America. He graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry in 2014 covering the Dallas Mavericks and SMU Mustangs with 247Sports. He then moved to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of the Longhorns and Aggies sites a year later. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels, including Twitter on @MattGalatzan.

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