Jameis Winston is Still a Rapist.

[Sox-n-hawks]

So here's a surprise. "Jameis Winston accused of groping Uber driver." Wow... good thing Florida State paid off his first accuser to the tune of $950k.

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/21446306/nfl-investigating-allegation-tampa-bay-buccaneers-qb-jameis-winston-groped-female-uber-driver
http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/25/us/florida-state-fsu-settles-jameis-winston-rape-lawsuit/index.html

[Seahawks4Ever]

He got off easy the "first" time so why am I not surprised he is a repeat offender?? Can we say Jeremy Stevens?

[Hawktawk]

I believe this is the 3rd time his name has been linked in some fashion to sexual assault. He also jumped on a table while in college in the cafeteria and started grabbing himself and chanting a profane rap while still under suspicion of sexual assault.Then there's the crab legs theft etc.
This is not a good person and also a QB who is regressing. Maybe being out hammered grabbing pussy from uber drivers has something to do with it?

[Sox-n-hawks]

I don't know about anyone else I'd like to see Goodell take a harder stance on this than the domestic violence charges. They're both absolutely heinous and uncalled for. If a man or woman serving our country in uniform can abide by a set code of ethics and only make $24,000 a year... surely these millionaire entertainers can be held to a standard.

[RiverDog]

Winston responded immediately, denied the charges, said there were other people in the car while his accuser claims that they were alone, so obviously someone is lying. As a rule, this would have been a pretty easy case to prove. If Winston is telling the truth, he would have been able to produce a witness or witnesses that would bear out his side of the story. Consequently, the driver would have been able to produce records to prove that she was alone with him, and if she can, then Winston might have hung himself by claiming that they were not alone. But all the driver did was notify her employer, she did not notify law enforcement. Now they're tasked with finding witnesses and relying on recollections of an event that occurred over 1.5 years ago.

We have to be careful not to jump to conclusions as it seems that some of you seem to have already passed judgement based simply on his past and an unproven, uncorroborated allegation. Winston is a high profile, highly paid professional athlete, and his problems are well known, which would make him a prime target for extortion.

There has been a recent "tsunami", to coin a phrase from another thread, of sexual harassment claims against newsworthy figures that has been splattered across the various media sources, some going back 30 years into the past. There exists the possibility that some of these claims are exaggerated. There is a bandwagon effect that can influence memories, even those memories of completely honest individuals when they hear of an event that might have some common elements with one they experienced..."By God, now that I think of it..."

I'm not defending Winston. I'm simply saying that there are two sides to this story.

[Sox-n-hawks]

I get it, innocent until proven guilty. Everyone deserves the benefit of a doubt. BUT if a local police officer was suspected of any sort of sexual assault/harassment or domestic violence. They would be placed on administrative leave. My assertion is that the NFL should take the same stance.

[RiverDog]

I get it, innocent until proven guilty. Everyone deserves the benefit of a doubt. BUT if a local police officer was suspected of any sort of sexual assault/harassment or domestic violence. They would be placed on administrative leave. My assertion is that the NFL should take the same stance.

Sorry, but LE doesn't place on administrative leave police officers that have an allegation from 20 months ago levied on them unless they have some pretty good evidence, and that type of evidence does not exist in this case, at least not yet.

The NFL is checking into the story, as is the team. All I'm saying is let's give it a chance to play out.

[idhawkman]

Unless there is photographic proof, it is hard to prove something so old. Did she tell her friends, family or other people other than her employer? I don't want to put all the burden of proof on her but there have been false claims against people over the recent years that make us suspect all accusers of wanting to shake down an otherwise innocent person. We all know how the Hands-up-don't-shoot case turned out. The Baltimore police brutality case, That kid in Floriday, the Duke La Crosse players, etc.

I think examples should be made of people who make false accusations (that can be proven) so that others don't immitate these actions looking for a quick payday from someone they think has deep pockets.

[RiverDog]

Unless there is photographic proof, it is hard to prove something so old. Did she tell her friends, family or other people other than her employer? I don't want to put all the burden of proof on her but there have been false claims against people over the recent years that make us suspect all accusers of wanting to shake down an otherwise innocent person. We all know how the Hands-up-don't-shoot case turned out. The Baltimore police brutality case, That kid in Floriday, the Duke La Crosse players, etc.

I think examples should be made of people who make false accusations (that can be proven) so that others don't immitate these actions looking for a quick payday from someone they think has deep pockets.

The driver filed her report to her employer immediately after the ride ended, recommended that they not pick him up anymore, so chances are that something did happen. But if it was as serious as she says it was, she should have reported it immediately to the police as well, and if her supervisor had any training at all, he would have explained her options to her.

Most prosecutors won't pursue a harassment claim that's over 2 years old, and this one's close to that at about 20 months, so I doubt that LE will get involved unless some pretty convincing evidence surfaces. It will be interesting to see what the league comes up with.

[Hawktawk]

The driver filed her report to her employer immediately after the ride ended, recommended that they not pick him up anymore, so chances are that something did happen. But if it was as serious as she says it was, she should have reported it immediately to the police as well, and if her supervisor had any training at all, he would have explained her options to her.

Most prosecutors won't pursue a harassment claim that's over 2 years old, and this one's close to that at about 20 months, so I doubt that LE will get involved unless some pretty convincing evidence surfaces. It will be interesting to see what the league comes up with.

Jeezus RD, you really jut don't get it do you? An uber driver gets assaulted by an obviously hammered Winston while he's in a car with his buddies. Yeah why didn't she report the #1 pick in the draft, the QB of the Bucs???

Just look at how damn near every one of the women are treated. Its a wonder any of them report anything....Your objectivity only extends to men accused of stuff apparently, not female accusers who have absolutely nothing to gain for the most part.

[burrrton]

Just look at how damn near every one of the women are treated.

Like who, and what 'treatment' is so bad that sexual assault should go unpunished??

[Hawktawk]

Like who, and what 'treatment' is so bad that sexual assault should go unpunished??[/quote]
M
We may misunderstand one another, not sure what you’re asking. Sexual assault hits way to close for me to begin with. By treatment I mean Paula Jones , Gennifer Flowers Lewinsky etc being branded lying tramps. Same playbook with trump. Look at guys like Hardy and Elliot who have the Nflpa battling on behalf of their despicable conduct.like I say people I know and love have been victimized , it’s a life sentence for some and it takes a long time to open up about it. Sometimes decades.

I tend to err on the side of the accuser or at a minimum I never discount their story unless it’s just ridiculous.
But I’m 100% in favor of punishment. With his prior history Winston should be suspended with pay until
The investigation is completed . The league has enough bad publicity as it is.

[burrrton]

By treatment I mean Paula Jones , Gennifer Flowers Lewinsky etc being branded lying tramps.

Yeah, that's repulsive, but if my wife or daughter was sexually assaulted, name-calling would be the last thing I'd be worried about, and the fckr would be in court so fast it would make his head swim (assuming he survived the initial encounter with me).

And I don't discount anybody's story, either, but sexual assault is a *serious* charge, and there are too many examples of fabricated accusations (See: Rolling Stone and mattress girl. See also: Duke Lacrosse Team)- both the accusation and claims of innocence should be taken seriously.

(and yeah, I agree that this sounds like a credible accusation and should be treated as such)

[RiverDog]

Jeezus RD, you really jut don't get it do you? An uber driver gets assaulted by an obviously hammered Winston while he's in a car with his buddies. Yeah why didn't she report the #1 pick in the draft, the QB of the Bucs???

Just look at how damn near every one of the women are treated. Its a wonder any of them report anything....Your objectivity only extends to men accused of stuff apparently, not female accusers who have absolutely nothing to gain for the most part.

I don't know that she was assaulted and neither do you. And how do you know that she was aware that Winston was the #1 pick in the draft? Is some random female Uber driver in Phoenix going to be as aware as us diehard football fans about the status of an NFL player on the other side of the country? You're jumping to conclusions.

I don't doubt that something happened, but whether or not it constituted sexual assault isn't known. Regardless of her motivation for not immediately reporting it to LE, the fact that she waited 20 months to make an issue out of it makes it very difficult to investigate.

Let's at least wait and see what the league says.

[Hawktawk]

Rd the driver reported that Winston’s friends introduced her to him and told her she was going to have a famous athlete sitting next to her. She also said that she recognized him at that point.

I must have too much free time.i research these scandals deeply. I get the impression that a lot of people, really most probably don’t catch more than a few sound bites.

[RiverDog]

Rd the driver reported that Winston’s friends introduced her to him and told her she was going to have a famous athlete sitting next to her. She also said that she recognized him at that point.

I must have too much free time.i research these scandals deeply. I get the impression that a lot of people, really most probably don’t catch more than a few sound bites.

Hawktalk, have you ever heard of the old saying to believe half of what you see and nothing of what you hear (or in this case, read)?

Give the league a chance to investigate this. The Ray Rice incident convinced them to be extremely wary of even the hint of sexual assault or abuse, so I'm certain that they'll do a very thorough job investigating this. All I'm asking you to do is to wait until their report comes out.

[Hawktawk]

I guess I should’ve kept in mind that an Uber driver committed an act of terror a few weeks ago.


Honestly though RD I believe prior conduct moves someone a lot closer to the guilty column if more allegations surface. Again it’s common sense.

The nfl may not be able to reach a resolution but I’ve made up my mind based on what I felt was a credible detailed statement by a female Uber driver against a guy with a track record . I believe the tsunami of revelations during this women’s revolt prompted her to have the courage to tell her story. I believe her. I believe the women in the news and as I’ve said I believe it’s the tip of the iceberg with these high profile guys.