Reuben Foster’s hiring by the Washington Redskins came just days after he was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence. Now, his accuser is speaking out.
“When he got signed, I was like I can’t believe somebody picked him up,” said Foster’s ex-girlfriend, Elissa Ennis, in an interview with Good Morning America. She went on to say that his quick move to a new team after the 49ers fired him felt like a “slap in the face.”
The alleged domestic violence incident reportedly happened in Florida last month, while the 49ers were staying at the Grand Hyatt hotel in Tampa, ahead of their game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Foster was eventually charged with first-degree misdemeanor domestic violence, ABC News reports.
Ennis, who was in an on-and-off relationship with Foster for four years, said that he invited her to Tampa so that the could “work on their relationship.” According to her account of the incident, things got violent when she threatened to tell his new girlfriend that he’d flown her out to Florida.
“He invited me to come see him in Florida,” she said. “He took one of my phones and he slapped me and pushed me.”
The Washington Redskins previously addressed the charges against Foster with a statement from Doug Williams, senior vice president of player personnel.
“The Redskins fully understand the severity of the recent allegations made against Reuben,” it reads. “If true, you can be sure these allegations are nothing our organization would ever condone.”
The statement also reveals that Foster won’t be able to don the team uniform just yet. Besides the legal process, he will also be investigated by the NFL and he’ll have to meet with the team’s counselors.
According to the statement, which was posted on Twitter , the decision to claim rights to Foster was made after “candid conversations” with some of his ex-teammates who are current Redskins players. Williams claims that these players were “overwhelmingly supportive” of their decision to add him to the roster.
Redskins claim former 49ers LB Rueben Foster https://t.co/HhRbQN0eNe pic.twitter.com/kzM8Hd7zxR
— COMMANDERS FOOTBALL (@HogsHaven) November 27, 2018
In the GMA interview, Ennis claimed that this was not the first time that Foster was physically aggressive with her. She also said the incident in Tampa also wasn’t the first time that the police got involved. She claims that she called the authorities on him twice for domestic violence, while neighbors called a third time. She also claimed that they were both in therapy to help them heal the issues in their relationship.
“We both were seein’ therapists and stuff, tryin’ to work on our relationship,” she said. “So I was like, ‘I can’t believe you — you’re back to doin’ this.’”
