Rainey's girlfriend wants battery charges dropped

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) Former Pittsburgh Steeler Christopher Rainey's girlfriend says she was not assaulted, and that the state of Florida should drop the battery charge against him.

That's according to Rainey's lawyer, Huntley Johnson, who read an email from the woman during a bond hearing Friday. The Gainesville Sun (http://bit.ly/VYMGYf ) posted video of the hearing on its website.

Gainesville police charged Rainey with simple battery Thursday after an alleged altercation with his girlfriend. Police say the two were arguing over Rainey's cellphone, and that when his girlfriend got into a vehicle, the ex-Florida Gator tried to pull her out. Witnesses told detectives that Rainey slapped his girlfriend across the face and then chased her when she ran away with his phone in her purse.

The girlfriend's email said the witnesses were mistaken, and Johnson pointed out that officers found no marks on the woman's face.

Rainey, who was cut by the Steelers after his arrest, was released after the hearing but ordered not to have any contact with his girlfriend.

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