A former Eastlake High School football coach arrested for beating and choking his girlfriend had a family violence charge dismissed after completing a pretrial diversion program, court records show.
Ruben Rodriguez, who had served as Eastlake’s football head coach since 2019 up until his 2025 arrest, agreed to enter the diversion program in exchange for one count of assault causing bodily injury to a family member to be dismissed.
A pretrial diversion program is common for first-time offenders. The program includes several terms that a defendant must agree to abide by. According to court documents, the conditions in the agreement signed by Rodriguez were:
Rodriguez successfully completed the program, and the charge against him was dismissed on June 25, according to a pretrial diversion program dismissal document filed in court.
Rodriguez is eligible to have his criminal records related to the case expunged, the documents state.
‘Take it,’ Coach told girlfriend during beating
El Paso County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a family violence call about 1:10 a.m. on Sept. 28 at a home on Doncaster Street in the Eastlake area.
Rodriguez told deputies he was asleep and did not know how his girlfriend got injured, a complaint affidavit states. A deputy wrote in the affidavit that Rodriguez appeared to have redness on the knuckles of his right hand.
Rodriguez’s girlfriend received medical attention. She had blood smeared on her face and hands, her eyes were red and swollen, as if they had been poked, her left cheek was swollen and she had redness on the left side of her neck, the affidavit states.
The woman told deputies that the incident started when she was in bed and an argument with Rodriguez escalated, the affidavit states. No information is included on what the argument was over.
The woman said Rodriguez allegedly dragged her by the hair to the floor in front of the bed. He straddled her with his legs around her neck and chest and began to punch or slap her, the affidavit states.
“Take it,” Rodriguez told the girlfriend as he hit her, the affidavit states. He used his legs and both hands to choke her to the point that she felt she was going to lose consciousness, the woman told deputies. He used his thumbs to push her eyes in, the affidavit stated.
The girlfriend bit Rodriguez on the thigh in an attempt to get him off her, she told deputies. Rodriguez got off the girlfriend, who ran to her son’s bedroom and told her son to call 911, the affidavit states. The girlfriend claimed that there is a history of family violence.
Deputies arrested Rodriguez on Sept. 28 on suspicion of assault against a family or household member by impeding breath or circulation.
He was booked on a $40,000 bond and was released from the El Paso County jail Downtown the same day after posting bail, jail logs show.
Rodriguez removed as Eastlake football coach
Rodriguez was the head coach at Eastlake High School until 2019, when he was removed from his position shortly after his arrest. He guided the Falcons to the District 1-6A title in 2024.
JB Frontz replaced Rodriguez as the head coach in January. Frontz served as interim coach after Rodriguez’s arrest.
It is unclear if Rodriguez will be able to coach again. The University Interscholastic League (UIL), which oversees high school sports in Texas, states in its “Constitution and Contest Rules” that it enforces strict administrative rules, including requirements for background checks on coaches. However, the UIL rules state that the hiring and firing decisions are made by local school boards.
Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Court records show charge dismissed against ex-Eastlake coach
Reporting by Aaron Martinez, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
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By Aaron Martinez, El Paso Times | USA TODAY Network
