Attorney for Winston accuser says sex not consensual

By foxsports
Published

Patricia Carroll, the attorney for the alleged victim of Jameis Winston, released a statement late Friday night stating, "to be clear, the victim did not consent. This was rape."

On Thursday, Winston's attorney, Tim Jansen, said he was not surprised that the Florida State quarterback's DNA was found in the victim's underwear. Jansen said that Winston voluntarily gave a DNA swab on Nov. 14, and the lawyer said the sex was consensual.

Carroll refuted Jansen's assertion.

"Jansen stated that the DNA leak damaged his client's reputation. Why would a consensual encounter damage his client's reputation?" Carroll said. "The 'consent defense' is too little too late and is clearly reactive damage control by Jansen."

One of the inconsistencies in the police report, which was released to the media but heavily redacted, is that the accuser listed Winston as between 5-foot-9 and 5-11. Winston is 6-4.

"DNA is not 5-9 to 5-11," Carroll said. "This was rape."

On Friday afternoon, State Attorney Willie Meggs told the Associated Press he had interviewed the alleged victim. But he did not give a timeline as to when the investigation would be completed.

Winston has not been arrested or charged, but he has been linked to a Dec. 7, 2012, police report that alleges sexual assault.

If felony charges are brought forward against Winston, he would not be able to practice or play for Florida State due to athletic department policy. The policy does have a clause that includes "extraordinary circumstances," but it's not clear if administrators would allow Winston to play.

Winston, a redshirt freshman, has been one of the top quarterbacks in college football this season. He has thrown for 2,938 yards and 28 touchdowns, leading No. 2 Florida State to a 10-0 start.

The Seminoles have two regular-season games remaining -- Idaho at home on Saturday and then at Florida on Nov. 30. Florida State is also the ACC's Atlantic Division champion, and the Seminoles will play the Coastal winner on Dec. 7 in Charlotte, N.C.