Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice is facing a civil lawsuit filed by his former girlfriend, who claims he physically abused her over a period spanning from December 2023 through July 2025.
The lawsuit was filed Monday in Dallas County by Dacoda Jones, who shares two children with Rice and states she was expecting during several of the alleged incidents. Jones is requesting more than $1 million in damages, her attorney Ron Estefan confirmed.
According to court documents, Rice and Jones shared residences in Victory Park, Texas, and Lee’s Summit, Missouri. The filing alleges Rice strangled Jones in December 2023, and over the two-year period “grabbed, choked, strangled, pushed, thrown, scratched, hit and headbutted Ms. Jones, as well as hit her with inanimate objects.”
The legal complaint also describes Rice’s alleged pattern of destructive behavior, including “throwing objects, destroying property, punching walls, and breaking furniture, as well as locking her out in the middle of the night.”
Jones is seeking compensation for physical suffering and emotional distress, bodily harm, scarring, past and future medical expenses, and lost income as part of her damage claims.
ESPN reports that Jones’ legal team declined to provide comment. Rice has not faced criminal charges related to these allegations, and neither he nor his representatives have responded to media requests for comment.
The Chiefs organization released a statement Wednesday saying, “The club is aware (of the lawsuit) and remains in communication with the National Football League.”
On January 7, Jones shared images on her Instagram profile that seemed to document physical injuries. She also made public allegations about years of mistreatment.
In a social media post that has since been removed, Jones wrote: “I’m so tired of keeping quiet I’m so tired of protecting his image. I’ve been through enough in the span of 8 years and I’ve had ENOUGH! I’ve dealt with abuse for years, me and this man decided to break up a couple months ago and it’s been nothing but hell.”
She continued: “He literally left us in Kansas and I had to beg him to send money so that I could drive to Texas with my kids and all our stuff. We have an agreement because of everything he’s put me through and he still doesn’t follow it. He’s now trying to remove me and my kids from our home for no apparent reason. I’ve known this man for YEARS. He tries to put on this persona like he’s dad of the year. He does the bare minimum and I have to beg for that. I’ve protected his image too long and I’m done doing that. It’s time to protect my peace, protect my children and stand up for myself.”
The NFL stated Wednesday that “The matter remains under review.”
The 25-year-old Rice began this season serving a six-game suspension for violating the league’s personal conduct standards following his involvement in a multi-vehicle accident in Dallas that injured several people during the 2024 season. He entered guilty pleas in district court to two third-degree felony counts related to collision causing serious injury and highway racing resulting in bodily harm.
The incident involved six vehicles total. Rice and four companions left the scene without assisting the injured parties and ran away before law enforcement arrived.
Rice received five years of deferred probation and a 30-day jail sentence. He was also ordered to pay over $115,000 in victim restitution.
During this season, he recorded 53 catches for 571 yards and five touchdowns while the Chiefs went 3-5 in games he played.
Throughout his three seasons with Kansas City, Rice has accumulated 156 catches for 1,797 yards and 14 touchdowns across 28 regular-season contests, starting 20 games. He also contributed six receptions for 39 yards when Kansas City defeated San Francisco in overtime to win Super Bowl LVIII.
