Allen Sawyer, an attorney for Choudri and Starostyuk, said the Sacramento County District Attorney\u2019s Office \u201cimmediately\u201d declined to file charges after Folsom police forwarded the incident.<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. Choudri was never asked to appear in court,\u201d Sawyer said in an email Monday night. He added that \u201cthis matter is over and no further action will be taken.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to dispatch recordings reviewed by The Sacramento Bee, Choudri was arrested after officers were called to the home for an alleged fight between Starostyuk and Choudri\u2019s 17-year-old daughter. Dispatchers relayed to officers that Starostyuk had \u201cpulled her hair and pushed her\u201d before locking her out of the house. It was not clear who made the call to 911, but all three residents were outside the home when police arrived.<\/p>\n
Choudri and Starostyuk, a former professor at Metropolitan State University of Denver, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The police spokesperson said the department does not comment on specifics of arrests, referring further questions to the DA\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n
The District Attorney\u2019s Office in a statement Tuesday said its investigators did not find sufficient evidence to charge Choudri before his expected arraignment on Feb. 6 because they could not determine a clear \u201cdominate aggressor\u201d in the incident.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur office takes all allegations of domestic violence incredibly seriously, regardless of who the suspect is or what position they hold in our community,\u201d the DA\u2019s Office said in the statement. \u201cPer Penal Code section 13701, in domestic violence situations law enforcement shall take steps to determine who the \u2018dominant aggressor\u2019 is to make the appropriate arrest. In this case, law enforcement arrested one male and one female. Officers did not see or note any injuries to either individual.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSince the evidence does not clearly demonstrate a \u2018dominant aggressor\u2019 we determined there was insufficient evidence to file charges to sustain our burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubt,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n
California High Speed Rail CEO Ian Choudri is interviewed by the California McClatchy Editorial Board Wednesday, July 30, 2025, in Fresno. ERIC PAUL ZAMORA ezamora@fresnobee.com <\/p>\n
The arrest occurred hours after Choudri appeared with Gov. Gavin Newsom at a High-Speed Rail Authority facility in Kern County, where the governor touted progress on the long-delayed project<\/a> and criticized the Trump administration\u2019s decision to pull $4 billion in federal funding.<\/p>\n Newsom\u2019s office referred a request for comment to the High Speed Rail Authority.<\/p>\n Choudri joined Newsom that day to announce the completion of the authority\u2019s 150-acre railhead facility near Shafter, which will serve as a staging area for track construction in the Southern San Joaquin Valley.<\/p>\n \u201cThe High-Speed Rail Authority is aware of the matter and is reviewing it,\u201d a spokesperson for the agency said in a statement Monday night.<\/p>\n Choudri was appointed CEO by the authority\u2019s board of directors in August 2024<\/a>. According to previous Bee reporting, he previously worked on large-scale construction projects in more than 18 countries.<\/p>\n The Bee\u2019s Daniel Hunt contributed to this story.<\/p>\n This story was originally published February 16, 2026 at 7:11 PM.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n
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