49ers' defensive end Ray McDonald bailed on domestic violence charges

The San Francisco 49ers defensive end Ray McDonald has been arrested, jailed and bailed on domestic violence charges, California police said on Sunday.

The Sacramento Bee reported that police were called to a birthday party being held for McDonald, who turns 30 on Tuesday. The newspaper and NBC Bay Area, which first reported the news, also reported a police source as saying that the alleged victim, McDonald’s fiancée, was 10 weeks pregnant.

If McDonald is found guilty, that could lead to a tougher penalty than the new six-game ban for a first offence that was announced by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on Thursday.

In a letter to NFL team owners, Goodell announced increased punishments for players convicted of domestic violence. The commissioner acted in the wake of controversy over a two-game ban given to the Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice, who did not contest a charge of aggravated assault in a February incident involving his then fiancée.

Under the new guidelines, employees of the league who violate its domestic violence policy will be suspended without pay for six games; second offences will lead to lifetime bans, which will be subject to appeal.

First offences, however, could lead to longer bans if employees have prior convictions, if weapons are involved or if the offence was against a pregnant woman or was carried out in the presence of a child.

McDonald was released from jail after posting bail, a Santa Clara County sheriff’s sergeant told the Associated Press.

In a statement, the 49ers general manager, Trent Baalke, said: “The 49ers organization is aware of the recent reports regarding Ray McDonald and we take such matters seriously. As we continue to gather the facts, we will reserve further comment.”

Rice’s ban, which was accompanied by a fine of an “additional game check”, was contrasted in the media to tougher penalties handed out to players breaking the league’s substance abuse policy. On Wednesday last week, the Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon was banned for a year for using marijuana.

On Friday, the 49ers linebacker Aldon Smith was banned by the NFL for nine games, for violating the league’s substance abuse and personal conduct policies.

It was also reported on Sunday that McDonald, a third-round draft pick in 2007 and a regular starter, was arrested in 2010 for driving under the influence.

The San Francisco Chronicle sports reporter Anne Killion wrote that McDonald’s arrest was the 10th of a 49ers player since the beginning of 2012, the most for any team in the NFL. The figure was taken from the San Diego Union-Tribune’s NFL Arrests Database.

“Something is wrong within the 49ers culture right now,” wrote Killion. “The team wants to be viewed as one of the league’s elite but leading the league in arrests is not, I assume, what it has in mind.”