Bears release ex-49er Ray McDonald after Monday arrest in San Jose
Former 49ers defensive end Ray McDonald was arrested Monday in San Jose, prompting his new team, the Chicago Bears, to release him later in the day. It was McDonald’s third legal issue in less than a year.
“We believe in second chances, but when we signed Ray we were very clear what our expectations were if he was to remain a Bear,” Bears general manager Ryan Pace said in a statement. “He was not able to meet the standard and the decision was made to release him.”
McDonald was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor domestic violence and child endangerment at 7 a.m. and was booked into the Santa Clara County main jail. Police were dispatched at 3:48 a.m to McDonald’s residence in Santa Clara, where, according to the Santa Clara Police Department, McDonald was accused of physically assaulting a woman while she was holding a baby.
When officers arrived, McDonald was not there. Authorities located him at the San Jose residence of another former 49ers lineman, Justin Smith, according to property records. Smith is not implicated; the alleged incident happened earlier and at a different address.
After the Bears announced McDonald had been released, Chicago offensive lineman Kyle Long tweeted, “Good riddance.”
The 49ers dismissed McDonald, 30, after a sexual assault allegation in December that still is being investigated. The team cited a pattern of poor decisions when they released him. The Bears signed McDonald as a free agent in March after being assured the December incident would not lead to charges.
The first incident involving McDonald occurred in August at his then-San Jose home. McDonald was arrested on suspicion of felony domestic abuse after an argument with his fiancée, who was 10 weeks pregnant. No charges were filed in the case after prosecutors deemed there was insufficient evidence to move forward.
According to NBC Bay Area, the baby was born in March and mother and son are living in the south Bay Area.
Matt Barrows: @mattbarrows, read more about the team at sacbee.com/sf49ers.
This story was originally published May 25, 2015 at 10:25 AM with the headline "Bears release ex-49er Ray McDonald after Monday arrest in San Jose."