HOUSTON — Texans safety Jimmie Ward was arrested Thursday evening for the second time in two months.
According to the Montgomery County (Texas) Jail website, Ward was arrested on a warrant related to a felony offense. No bail was listed, but Ward will be released by court order Friday, according to the website.
Ward’s lawyer, Steve Jackson, told KPRC 2, Houston’s NBC affiliate, that Ward was arrested because he tested positive for alcohol in violation of his previous release, and that as a result, he had to spend the night in jail. Jackson told the TV station that Ward was not facing any new allegations and that Ward was not aware he could not drink alcohol.
The Texans declined to comment.
Ward was first arrested June 12 at his home in Magnolia, Texas, on a felony charge of assaulting a family/house member, impeding breath circulation. A woman called authorities and said Ward assaulted, strangled and threatened her. An emergency protective order was filed at the woman’s request. Ward was released after posting $30,000 bail.
Ward’s lawyer told KPRC 2 that the case would go to a grand jury Aug. 31 and that Ward would be “vindicated.”
The NFL said in June that it was aware of Ward’s arrest and was in contact with the Texans. Houston general manager Nick Caserio, asked about Ward’s initial arrest on the first day of training camp, said the team would “kind of let the legal process take care of itself.”
“We will work with the league. We will be compliant on our end, do the best we can,” Caserio said. “Whatever the outcome is, we’ll handle it accordingly.”
Ward was put on the Texans’ physically unable to perform list because of a foot injury to start training camp and has not been activated.
Ward, 34, signed a two-year, $13 million contract with the Texans as a free agent in 2023 after spending his first nine seasons with the San Francisco 49ers. He joined DeMeco Ryans in his first season coaching in Houston after the two had worked together in San Francisco from 2017 to 2022.
In 2023, Ward played 10 games and had an interception. The Texans then gave him a one-year extension in August 2024, but his season was cut short when he sustained a significant foot injury in Week 16 against the Kansas City Chiefs.
