[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
The Bachelorette alum James McCoy Taylor is in legal trouble — AGAIN!
According to the College Station Police Department the 38-year-old former reality star — who starred in JoJo Fletcher’s season of the dating series — was arrested on Sunday.
Public information officer David Simmons told Page Six the bust took place at a bar in Brazos County, Texas after warrants issued by the Bryan Police Department. He was booked on charges of assault causing bodily injury and unlawful restraint, both stemming from an incident on April 24 with a 19-year-old college student.
Related: Bachelorette Alum Katie Thurston Reveals She Was ‘Victim Of Rape’
According to an arrest report obtained by KBTX on Monday, the unidentified teenager met Taylor at a bar in the Northgate entertainment district of College Station. The country singer brought her back to his home in Bryan, where they started kissing in a bedroom. When the woman began to feel uncomfortable, she told Taylor she wanted to leave. And things started to take a terrifying turn from there. She told police Taylor became “very serious and intense” and “got a look on his face that frightened her.” Per the report, the teen then went to the bathroom to call a friend to help her get an Uber home. Upon leaving the restroom, the student claimed to cops, she found Taylor naked on the bed. Whoa.
She asked him to put his clothes back on and once again told him she wanted to leave. Seeming to give in, Taylor walked the woman to the front door. But when she opened it, he allegedly slammed it shut and forcibly kissed her. The report states the musician then threw her to the ground, got on top of her, and groped her genitals. She told police she was able to break free, run outside, and get into the Uber that was waiting.
The following day, Bryan police officers met with the college student and noticed multiple contusions on her hip and butt. They also looked at the texts sent between the woman and her pal that matched the story of what happened. A few messages said:
“Please come get me”
“I’m not ok”
“He’s forcing himself on me.”
So, so awful…
Law enforcement also talked to Taylor, during which he called his encounter with the student “enjoyable and consensual.” ICK! He denied he ever shoved her to the ground or got on top of her. Notably, KBTX reported the police mentioned in their probable cause affidavit they did not believe Taylor was truthful with them about what happened. Yet, he still maintains his innocence. He continued to deny wrongdoing in a statement to Page Six on Monday, saying:
“Not so much as a scratch on me (as I showed to police via pictures of my whole body, which was awkward to say the least) … but I was trying to ‘unlawfully restrain’ a girl and she just … got away … and walked right to her Uber right outside my house? With no injuries?”
It’s important to note again that the police did see contusions on her body the day after the alleged incident. Taylor then insisted he “would never hurt anybody” and does not even know the woman’s name. That last part we believe. He said:
“We didn’t spend much time together, but I feel like she wouldn’t want all this to have gotten here either if she could go back.”
While Taylor said he does not “hate” the student for making the accusation, he wishes he knew “where this came from.” Hmm. This is not the first time Taylor has been in trouble with the law, though. In fact, the first time even happened while in a very concerning situation with a different woman half his age!
Two years ago, he was arrested in College Station for driving while intoxicated and unlawfully carrying a weapon. As we previously reported, the former television personality was caught urinating in a parking garage, and a police officer told him not to drive. However, he ignored the warning and got behind the wheel anyway — and was later arrested.
At the time, he also had an 18-year-old “college freshman companion” with him in the car whom he said he planned to take back to her dorm. A police report noted she was “not in any kind of condition to appraise the benefits and risks of the situation she was in.” Whoa! It sounds like she was drunk and unable to consent here! So scary! A year later, he was found guilty on those charges and sentenced to only five days in the Brazos County Detention Center and ordered to pay a $500 fine and $585 in court costs, per KBTX. His driver’s license was also temporarily suspended.
As for his latest alleged incident, Taylor has since been release on an $8,000 surety bond. Reactions, Perezcious readers? Sound off in the comments below.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources.
[Image via James McCoy Taylor/YouTube, College Station Police Department]
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