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LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A woman who is seeking a five-year extension of a domestic violence temporary restraining order against Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer told a judge today that she still felt an emotional connection to the pitcher even after he allegedly initiated anal sex with her after using her long hair to wrap around her neck and render her unconscious.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Dianna Gould-Saltman is presiding over a non-jury hearing to determine whether Bauer's 27-year-old accuser, a San Diego resident, is entitled to additional protection. In late June, Bauer's accuser obtained a temporary restraining order after claiming he physically assaulted her during a pair of sexual encounters. She alleges Bauer repeatedly choked her to unconsciousness and punched her in the face.
The woman testified Monday that the two met online and that she drove to his Pasadena home for the first of two sexual encounters on April 21. She said she noticed blood in the toilet bowl while using the restroom and realized that it had occurred during anal sex, which she had never engaged in before.
Cross-examined Tuesday by Bauer's lead attorney, Shawn Holley, about why she got back into the same bed with Bauer after leaving the restroom instead of sleeping on the couch, she said she had developed an emotional connection with him from the hours of conversation they had before going to bed, during which they both opened up about their feelings and their pasts.
“I didn't want to think about what just happened, I wanted to go back to the way it was before we had sex,'' she said.
The woman also acknowledged that during sexual foreplay, she responded to Bauer's inquiry of “How do you like it?'' by responding, “I like it a little rough.''
However, the woman also said she was not familiar with rough sex. She alleges she was again abused by Bauer during their second sexual encounter on May 15.
Bauer's accuser, who dubs herself an ardent San Diego Padres fan, also said she had previous sexual relationships with other major league players, including star Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr., who lately has played right field. She said her relationship with the player got her fired from the Pad Squad, the Padres' ambassador team that interacts with fans and the community.
In her concluding testimony on direct examination, Bauer's accuser was questioned by her lawyer, Lisa Helfend Meyer, about why she wanted the restraining order extended.
“I am fearful of what he can do to me,'' she said, adding that she doesn't want to see his number on her phone or allow any chance for him to come to San Diego to see her.
She said she waited more than a month to seek a restraining order because the Pasadena police detectives investigating her case told her Bauer would likely be arrested and that she would get automatic protection.
The woman said the experience with Bauer has cost her two jobs, left her with no income and forced her to move in with her parents.
Bauer, 30, leaned back in his seat and took notes, but showed no reaction as he listened to her testimony. His agent, Jon Fetterolf, issued a statement in June blasting the woman's allegations as baseless and defamatory, saying the pitcher “had a brief and wholly consensual sexual relationship initiated by (the accuser) beginning in April 2021.''
“We have messages that show (the accuser) repeatedly asking for `rough' sexual encounters involving requests to be `choked out' and slapped in the face,'' Fetterolf said then. “In both of their encounters, (the accuser) drove from San Diego to Mr. Bauer's residence in Pasadena, where she went on to dictate what she wanted from him sexually and he did what was asked.''
Bauer signed a three-year contract with the Dodgers on Feb. 11 worth $102 million, including $40 million this season, reported to be the highest single-season salary in baseball history. He has been placed on administrative leave through at least Aug. 20 by Major League Baseball and the Players Association.
Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported Saturday that Bauer was the subject of a temporary order of protection last year for allegedly physically abusing an Ohio woman and making a death threat toward her.
The newspaper said it obtained sealed court records and other documentation in which the woman alleges Bauer punched and choked her without her consent while they were having sex. He also allegedly sent her a text message saying he doesn't “feel like spending time in jail for killing someone.''
The Ohio order was part of an “ex parte,'' proceeding, meaning it was issued without a hearing from the other side.
It was not clear whether the alleged incident was investigated by police.
Bauer responded with a tweet Saturday, saying that “while I have allowed my representatives to speak on my behalf over the last six weeks, I can no longer be silent. I will speak very candidly about the current petition when appropriate, but need to address the allegations made today in The Washington Post.
“The Washington Post has spent the last six weeks digging into my life and attempting to contact hundreds of female friends and acquaintances with whom they suspect I had some form of romantic relations -- some of whom I haven't had contact with in over a decade -- in an effort to create a false narrative,'' he continued. “Several of these individuals have sent me screenshots of their requests, many shared that they had only positive things to say, and others felt very uncomfortable or harassed by the nature of their requests.
“Despite my representatives providing a wealth of contradictory evidence, documents, statements, and background information showing the pattern of disturbing behavior by this woman and her attorneys, The Washington Post opted to ignore much of this information and to run a salacious story disseminating defamatory statements, false information, and baseless allegations from a woman who has not only harassed and physically assaulted me but who also attempted to extort me for millions of dollars last year in exchange for her not coming forward with these false claims,'' Bauer wrote.
Fetterolf and Bauer's co-agent, Rachel Luba, released a statement saying Bauer and the Ohio accuser were in a consensual relationship from 2016 to 2019, and that she had filed a “bogus protection petition'' while “demanding $3.4 million for her to `remain silent.'''
The agents also told the Post the physical abuse allegations were “categorically false'' and questioned the validity of photographs reviewed by the newspaper showing bruises on her face and blood in her eyes, as well as the alleged threatening messages.
Bauer pitched for the Cleveland Indians from 2013-19, and for the Cincinnati Reds from 2019-20.
“You may not like this, and as a female it was a tough reality I had to accept, but this is not uncommon when it comes to celebrities -- this is yet another example of how people abuse the temporary DVRO process in hopes of gaining publicity/money,'' Luba tweeted Saturday.
The Dodgers declined to comment on the accusations.
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