A Struthers High School football standout who was accused of strangling a 16-year-old girl has been cleared of all charges.

According to Mahoning County Juvenile Court records, charges of assault and strangulation against 17-year-old Jason Dukes have been dismissed following a trial, with the court describing it as a "he said, she said" situation.

Back in September of 2024, Dukes was accused of grabbing the alleged victim by the neck and throwing her to the ground after driving her home from a party.

However, cross-examination of the neighbor who called the police revealed that she did not actually witness the incident and was only able to go by what the alleged victim told her happened and testified that she agreed that "there are two sides to every story."

Former Struthers High School football coach John Bayuk also took to the stand and vouched for Dukes saying he told him about the incident and was crying while doing so.

Bayuk testified that Dukes always takes accountability and said if he really wanted to injure the girl, he had the strength to do so.

Eventually, the alleged victim herself testified and said she and Dukes had recently broken up and was upset that he was talking to another girl at the party.

She testified that when the two got to her house, Dukes was yelling at her to get out of the car, but she wouldn't, further testifying that she held onto the steering wheel to keep herself inside, when he tried to get her out.

This testimony contradicted the police report regarding the incident, which listed Dukes as the suspect who would not let the teenage girl out of the vehicle.

The alleged victim testified that Dukes eventually was able to get her out by grabbing her by the legs and pulling her out of the car.

Dukes himself took to the stand and testified that he was not trying to hurt her and was just trying to get her out of the car. He further testified that he still cares about his accuser despite their relationship ending.

Ultimately, it was ruled that the alleged victim's testimony stating that Dukes choked her conflicted with the testimony of a nurse who did not see any marks on her neck at the time of the incident.

While the nurse did notice black and blue marks on the victim's knees, the court noted that these only appear days after an injury, so those could not have been from the night of the incident.

All charges against Dukes were dismissed.