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Alabama DL Jonathan Taylor arrested for domestic violence

(Photo by John Kelley, Georgia Sports)
(Photo by John Kelley, Georgia Sports)

Alabama defensive lineman Jonathan Taylor is back in the news for all the wrong reasons.

The 21-year-old Taylor, who enrolled at Alabama in January following his dismissal from Georgia, was arrested Saturday and charged with domestic violence and criminal mischief. Taylor was dismissed from Georgia in July following a previous domestic violence arrest. Charges are still pending in that case.

According to a release from Tuscaloosa Police, an altercation with Taylor’s girlfriend took place at approximately 6:00 p.m. Saturday evening. The 24-year-old woman had “minor injuries to her neck” and told police Taylor assaulted her.

Taylor, who is listed at 6-foot-4 and 335 pounds, was arrested for “Domestic Violence 3rd Degree Assault” and “Domestic Violence 3rd Degree Criminal Mischief” and was taken to the Tuscaloosa County Jail where he is being held on $1,000 bond.

Following his dismissal from Georgia, in which he was accused of choking and striking his then-girlfriend with a closed fist, Taylor played the 2014 season at Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Mississippi. He was brought in by Alabama as a part of its 2015 recruiting class.

In a statement that followed his enrollment, the school said that athletics “was not involved” in his admission to the university.

"Jonathan Taylor was admitted to The University of Alabama following the same procedures that the UA Admissions office uses to evaluate any student who has dealt with legal issues," the statement said. "The admissions process includes representatives from academic, legal, student affairs, student conduct, UAPD and counseling.  Athletics is not involved in the admissions process.  Taylor's continued enrollment depends on his ability to fulfill all requirements the University has specifically mandated for him during his time as a UA student."

After Taylor signed with the Tide, head coach Nick Saban said that Taylor deserved a second chance.

"I said this before that when people are young – and that is not a mistake that we condone in any shape or form, that's (disrespectful) to any person, let alone a female – there is some occasion to not condemn them for life, but to give them another chance," Saban said in February, per TideSports.com.

"It's up to them to prove that they deserve that chance. And when they get that opportunity they need to definitely do their very best to take advantage of it. This is the decision that we made. I know the sensitivity of the issue, and we're going to do what we can to help this young man have success here and not have issues anymore."

The news of Taylor’s arrest comes after safety Geno Smith was arrested for driving under the influence on early Saturday morning. Like Taylor, it was Smith’s second offense. Smith was also arrested for DUI in August 2013.

Per TideSports.com, Alabama officials “were not available for comment” on either incident Saturday night.

For more Alabama news, visit TideSports.com.

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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!