TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida State University football head coach Jimbo Fisher has dismissed quarterback De'Andre Johnson from the team, following the release of video showing Johnson punching a woman in the face.
The video was released by the Tallahassee Police Department Monday, and comes just a week after Johnson turned himself in on misdemeanor battery charges in connection with the incident in late June.
A statement from FSU reads, "Florida State head football coach Jimbo Fisher announced Monday evening that freshman De'Andre Johnson has been dismissed from the football team effective immediately. Johnson was indefinitely suspended on June 25 following initial reports of an incident that occurred off campus and resulted in a criminal charge."
Johnson, 19, was charged with misdemeanor battery from the incident at Yianni's Nightclub on June 24.
[RAW: Surveillance video]
Johnson is a First Coast High School graduate and played for its football team when he lived in Jacksonville.
According to Timothy Simmons, former vice principal of First Coast High School, during his time at the school Johnson was a good student.
"Johnson is a good young man. Strong young man. Academic focus. He never had any discipline issues while at First Coast, when I was there. I remember him being a young man with good integrity and good character. He really just wanted to do all he could academically to graduate early, but he ended up staying his full four years at First Coast. Good young man," Simmons said.
He was voted "Mr. Football" in Florida last year.
Johnson turned himself in to the Leon County Jail on June 30 after a warrant was issued for his arrest. He was released on $500 bond.
He was suspended indefinitely from the Florida State University football team following the incident.
Ellen Siler, CEO of Jacksonville's domestic violence center the Hubbard House, said she was saddened to see the video.
"I can't really make that correlation, but it does concern me any time somebody reacts out violently to another person and doesn't really care who might be watching and what ramifications there might be," Siler said.
The website TMZ reported that Johnson's family said the woman should be considered at fault because they said she struck first.
Local attorney Gene Nichols, who is not affiliated with the case, said that in the eyes of the law, it doesn't matter if it's a woman or man who strikes first, but he said in this case, Johnson will struggle with that defense because he said it appears that Johnson started it.
"They have not charged the young lady with a crime, mainly because I'm sure in their read of the video, there was a time period when he grabs her and you can clearly see on her face that it was the grabbing that she did not want to happen," Nichols said.
News4Jax did reach out to Florida State University's sports information department Monday but did not receive a reply.