Texas basketball coach Chris Beard arrested on felony assault charge
Chris Beard #ChrisBeard
Dec. 12 (UPI) — Texas men’s basketball coach Chris Beard was arrested, charged with felony assault and now is in jail after police responded to a “hot shot disturbance” call at a residence in Austin, Texas, authorities said Monday.
A spokesman from the Austin Police Department told UPI that officers received a call from the residence at about 12:15 a.m. local time. The department defines a “hot shot” as an incident that is in progress and is an “immediate threat to life and/or public safety.” Those calls require immediate dispatch.
Beard was booked into Travis County Jail at 5:18 a.m. Monday. He was charged with assault on family/household member, impede breath circulation,” which implies a claim of strangulation, according to Travis County Sheriff’s Office records.
The third-degree felony carries potential punishments of two to 10 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine, according to the Texas penal code.
“The university is aware of the situation regarding Chris Beard,” Texas said Monday morning in a news release. “We are continuing to gather information and monitor the legal process.”
Beard, 49, led the Longhorns to a 7-1 record through eight games this season. Texas hired the former Texas Tech and Little Rock coach in 2021.
The Longhorns are scheduled to host Rice (6-2) on Monday night in Austin. They will host Stanford on Sunday at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
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