A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge on Thursday denied a request to extend a temporary restraining order against Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer. Bauer remains under investigation by the Pasadena, Calif. Police Department for possible criminal charges, and he remains subject to a probe by Major League Baseball that could lead to his being disciplined by the league. Per the relevant joint agreement, MLB can discipline Bauer regardless of legal system outcomes.
Judge Dianna Gould-Saltman ruled that Bauer did not pose a future threat against a 27-year-old woman who has accused Bauer of sexual assault during a pair of encounters:
Gould-Saltman admitted "injuries as shown in the photographs are terrible," but said: "If she set limits and he exceeded them, this case would've been clear. But she set limits without considering all the consequences and respondent did not exceed limits that the petitioner set."
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) August 19, 2021
Bauer on Thursday invoked his rights under the Fifth Amendment and did not testify.
After the hearing, one of Bauer's attorneys released the following statement:
We are grateful to the Los Angeles Superior Court for denying the request for a permanent restraining order and dissolving the temporary restraining order against Mr. Bauer today. We have expected this outcome since the petition was filed in June. But we appreciate the court reviewing all the relevant information and testimony to make this decision.
Some additional context from reporter and attorney Sheryl Ring, who is not involved with the Bauer case:
3. Bauer's attorney conceded that he choked the petitioner until she was unconscious and was violent to her during sex. He himself invoked the Fifth Amendment. He was not "found innocent." He was found to be not a future threat to her.
— Sheryl Ring, supporting a Free Palestine (@Ring_Sheryl) August 19, 2021
Bauer is presently on administrative leave, and it is reported that his leave on Friday will be extended for a fifth time while MLB continues its investigation.
After two previous postponements, the civil court hearing proceeded forward on Monday for the first of what turned out to be four days of court proceedings. Bauer's attorneys had been seeking another continuance. The woman who filed for the protection order and accused Bauer of sexual assault was the first witness and gave more than three hours of testimony on the first day of the hearing.
"I've never been punched in the face ever," the woman said, according to the Associated Press. "I felt like my soul left my body, and I was terrified. I couldn't fight back."
She said Monday that Bauer choked her unconscious and punched her during their second encounter.
"I couldn't breathe. It almost felt like I was going to gag. I was gagging for air. Then I went unconscious," the woman said, per the AP. "It took me a while to remember who was even having sex with me, or where I was."
In late June, reports surfaced that a woman in California was seeking legal action against Bauer. She reported some serious injuries in what started as a consensual sexual encounter with Bauer. "I agreed to have consensual sex; however, I did not agree or consent to what he did next. I did not agree to be sexually assaulted," the woman said. The Athletic's full initial report, which includes graphic details from the restraining order, including allegations that Bauer strangled and punched the woman, can be found here.
Bauer, the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner who signed a three-year, $102 million deal with the Dodgers this past offseason, hasn't pitched since the allegations surfaced. MLB placed him on administrative leave while the league and the police investigate the situation. Bauer is paid on administrative leave, but if the league decides to suspend him under the Domestic Violence policy, he would lose his salary.
Dodgers president Andrew Friedman said the following on 710 ESPN radio in Los Angeles Monday: "We're gonna kind of sit back and wait for this to conclude and once it does, obviously, we'll have a lot to say on the matter."
There was also a recent report that a different woman filed a protection order against Bauer in Ohio last year. Bauer responded by saying the woman was trying to extort money from him and accused the Washington Post of taking part in a "false narrative."
