HUNTINGTON BEACH — The Internet world went viral Monday morning after reports surfaced that former UFC light-heavyweight champion and current TUF 11 coach Tito Ortiz had been arrested on suspicion of felony domestic violence. TMZ was one of the first media bodies to report the news, which released photographs and video of the fighter being handcuffed in front of his Huntington Beach, California residence.
The 35-year-old Ortiz and 36-year-old Jameson are not married, but they are the parents of 13-month-old twin boys Jesse James and Journey Jette, who reside with the couple at their house in Huntington Beach.
Later in the afternoon, TMZ caught up with Jameson in front of their house and she said, "I’m gonna be all right. My babies are all right. Everything’s okay. He’s in jail." Jameson was then seen packing some of Ortiz’s belongings with the help of her father, who was later identified as the man who made the call to 911 around 9:53 a.m. PST on Monday morning.
Jameson then curiously took a page out of Tila Tequila’s playbook from September 2009, when Tequila turned her attention to Twitter, after accusing San Diego Chargers football star Shawne Merriman of similar actions. Jameson posted on her Twitter account, shortly after the alleged domestic violence took place, stating "I’m sorry to all of my fans, but I’m going to be quitting Twitter. I cant take any more abuse from ANYONE.. To my sweet fans…thank you".
Jameson then returned to send out 10 more messages throughout the day and into early Tuesday morning to continue addressing Ortiz, saying that she could say more to ruin him, while denying his publicly-stated explantion on the matter.
That explanation came Monday evening during a press conference Ortiz held at at the Firenze Osteria restaurant in North Hollywood a few hours after he posted his $25,000 bail. The press conference was arranged to declare his innocence in front of local and national media. Ortiz’s friend and attorney Chip Matthews did most of the talking, stating that Jameson has been battling an addicition to OxyContin for "well over a year."
OxyContin is the brand name of a time-release formlua of oxycodone, which is a pain killing drug that has a high potential to cause physical and psychological dependence. The drug has very similar effects to morphine, which makes it appeal to the same community who abuse morphine and heroin.
According to KTLA News in Los Angeles, Matthews said Ortiz had confronted Jameson about some drugs he found Monday morning. Jameson denied it and "had some emotional breakdown over it." Matthews then explained, "As Tito was leaving, unfortunately she contacted the police department through another individual. I want to be quite clear, Tito Ortiz never laid a hand on Jenna."
A visibly distraught and teary-eyed Ortiz then thanked his fans and family for their support and offered the following statement without answering questions: "My parents have gone through an addiction… I’m not gonna let that happen to my family. I hold everything dear to my heart that Jenna will be okay."
TMZ contacted Jameson after the press conference, where she denied his claims, stating that he is "trying to save his career". She then went straight back to sending out more messages on her Twitter account, which she had just claimed to have quit using earlier in the day.
Meanwhile, Ortiz, who is easily one of the biggest names in MMA history, had been dealing with other issues that had recently made his near future in the sport uncertain. While he can be seen every Wednesday night as a coach on TUF 11, which is currently being televised on Spike, his third fight with his rival Chuck Liddell has recently been canceled. The bout with Liddell, the other coach on TUF 11, had recently been canceled due to an injury sustanined by Ortiz . Their third bout at the end of TUF 11 was set to take place on June 12th at UFC 115 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Instead, Liddell will face former middleweight champion Rich Franklin in a light-heavyweight bout, which is leading many to believe that an injured Ortiz might have to leave the pre-recorded reality show early.