Texans fired men's basketball coach Chris Beard on Thursday after he was arrested on December 12 for allegedly choking and biting his fiancée during an altercation at their Austin home.
Beard had been suspended without pay since he was arrested, and school officials have said there is an ongoing internal investigation.
Police responded to an emergency call at Beard's house in the early hours of December 12 and arrested him after his fiancée, Randi Trew, told officers he choked her from behind, bit her and hit her when the two got in an argument.
Beard's attorney has said the coach is innocent, and Trew has since issued a statement denying that Beard choked her.
The Associated Press obtained the termination letter that was sent to Beard's attorney. Beard had five years left on a seven-year guaranteed contract that includes a provision he could be fired for cause if he was charged with a felony.
'Chris Beard is crushed at the news he will not be coaching at the University of Texas,' said Beard's attorney, Perry Minton. 'I am concerned that the University of Texas has made a terrible decision against the interest of the University, based on Twitter feeds and editorials — and not the facts concerning a truly innocent man.'
The charge of assault by strangulation/suffocation family violence carries a possible prison sentence of two to 10 years if convicted.
While most domestic violence victims remain unidentified in media reports, Trew identified herself in a public statement on December 23 in which she denied telling police that Beard choked her. She also said she never intended for him to be arrested or prosecuted.
'Chris did not strangle me, and I told that to law enforcement that evening,' Trew said in her statement. '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.'
Trew's statement did not address why she made the emergency call or other details in the police report, such as bite marks and abrasions on her face and telling officers that she couldn't breathe for about five seconds.
According to the arrest affidavit, Trew initially told police that she and Beard they had been in an argument where she broke his glasses before he 'just snapped on me and became super violent.' Police reported Trew said Beard slapped her glasses off her face and 'choked me, bit me, bruises all over my leg, throwing me around and going nuts.'
The Travis County district attorney's office has not responded to previous requests for comment on Beard's case or whether Trew's December 23 statement would change how prosecutors proceed with the felony charge.
A January 18 court hearing is scheduled, according to online records.
Trew is a longtime volleyball coach who resigned from her position at a Texas high school in 2020 shortly before Beard accepted the coaching position in Austin.
Beard led Texas Tech to the 2019 NCAA Tournament championship game and was hired at Texas in 2021 with the expectation that he would lift his alma mater to the same elite level. He had the Longhorns program humming this season, starting 6-0 and ranked as high as No. 2.
Associate head coach Rodney Terry took Beard's place during the suspension. The Longhorns (12-2, 1-1 Big 12) won their first five games under Terry before losing 116-103 to Kansas State on Tuesday.
