Report: FSU Complicated Jameis Winston Investigation

((ht: foxsports.com))

Oh boy. An excellent piece of investigative reporting by FOX Sports has turned up proof that Florida State administrators had a hand in making the investigation of star QB Jameis Winston's rape allegations much more difficult to prosecute.

Reporter Kevin Vaughn dug into a mountain of e-mails along with audio and video recordings which show that FSU on more than one occasion gave information to their hand-picked attorney for Winston before giving or releasing the same information to investigators.

If this is proven in a court of law, things, um...well, they could get a bit more interesting.

Read Vaughn's excellent and detailed report RIGHT HERE

It essentially says that both University Police, Tallahassee Police and FSU athletics assistant Monk Bonasarte ran interference, deflecting both reporters questions and making sure that Winston's attorney's had the most up to date information on witnesses and others before District Attorney Willie Meggs' office did.

And yes, we know, while that unto itself does not prove that Winston committed a crime, it does indicate what many have suspected. The atmosphere in Tallahassee appears to be set-up to protect Winston or other football players at the expense of potential victims or anyone who calls athletes out for possible misdeeds.

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FSU Reopening Winston Title IX Investigation

((HT: ProFootballTalk))

Not surprising to the HQ at all, but this was the initial report OSG Sports gave on the Title IX investigation in and around the Florida State QB in the off-season.

It appears the university is now reopening the Title IX investigation that the alleged Winston rape victim requested at the time. Jameis Winston did not answer any questions in the initial investigation, so it was tabled.

The investigation was widely panned and the New York Times constructed all of the errors in one place.

The University responded to the New Yor Times piece and panned it in return...
((HT: CBSMiami))


Tha attorney for the accuser, John Clune, says that his client feels that the process is "moving forward" after his client was interviewed last month for an incident that happened in 2012:

"We expect that there will be code of conduct charges that will be brought," he told Rachel Axon of USA Today. "There's no basis not to bring those charges now."

During the criminal investigation, Winston (through his lawyers) maintained that the sexual contact was consensual.

But an on-campus Title IX investigation gets around the criminal complaint:

Decisions are made on a "preponderance of the evidence" and should, as a rule, take no longer than two months to complete. That would, then, make the decision public in the neighborhood of Week 10 of the college football season.

And could send the FSU football season into a tizzy for the next 8 weeks or so...

Got all that...???

DEVELOPING: Winston Accuser Attorney Blasts Investigation

Surprising no one, really...

Patricia Carroll, the attorney in the Jameis Winston rape case, held her own press conference this morning and understandably ripped the state attorney's office...

Her largest point of concern is in medical records released to the press, claiming they were intentionally redacted, though the family's copy includes more evidence of a rape- 2 pages in particular

"They are significantly different," she said. "There is no reason why the state would redact the injuries of the victim … There is no reason this would be redacted. In fact, I specifically requested (non-redacted) documents."

Carroll also went after Tallahassee police for allegedly only obtaining search warrants on the victim rather than on Winston. Carroll also went after state's attorney Willie Meggs and wants the state Attorney General Pam Bondi to hold an independent investigation of her own.

Carroll still backs her client and the assertion that she was raped, and there is no word yet from Bondi on whether she will pursue from her office...

More when we know more...

DEVELOPING: Winston Not To Be Charged (UPDATED)

Various sources are saying that FSU QB Jameis Winston will not be charged in the current sexual assault investigation ongoing by Tallahassee DA and Florida State Attorney's Offices...

Details of the allegations came out today with the release of the warrants, including:

Police said the woman recalled getting into a taxi with a “non-descript” black male and entering a ground-floor apartment, at which point the man took off her clothes and raped her as she tried to fight him off.
The search-warrant request said at some point the woman told police a black man with dreadlocks came into the room and told the man to stop, but the suspect led her into a bathroom where he “completed the act.”

More as we go with the press conference coming at the top of the hour...

1400 UPDATE: State Attorney Willie Meggs says the timing of the decision being the week before the ACC title game is "not driven by any Heisman demands or football schedule."

So says he...

Meggs also says he didn't have sufficient evidence to have "a reasonable likelihood of conviction..."

Take that however you wish...

The investigation had DNA from two males allegedly involved in the case- one of those identities was unknown, one was Winston's. Meggs said identifying the unknown person was reason the investigation took as long as it did. There was no evidence of drugs in accuser's blood and an alcohol level in her system that was not above the legal limit...

Here's Shelley Smith discussing the content of the warrants...
((HT: ESPN))

Potential Victim Warned by Police: The Curious Case of Jameis Winston

((ht: tampabay.com))

For those of you not up to speed, there appears to be a sexual assault case from late 2012 that may or may not implicate Florida State redshirt freshman phenom Jameis Winston.

The victim in the case, a then Florida State University student says she was attacked after a rendezvous with a yet unknown male at a Tallahassee area bar in November of 2012. She called police, who responded to her apartment and filed a report. While making the report, the woman identified Winston as the alleged perpetrator.

Her family released a statement Wednesday morning to the St. Petersburg (FL) Times. The statement says she was told, her life could "Be Made Miserable" and that Tallahassee was "A Big Football Town".

That statement was not given with context.

The part of this report that is concerning many is this: Very little, if anything that happened that November night in 2012 was made public...until last week (about a year later). And nobody knows (at this point) if Winston was involved or not. His name does not appear on any search records. It does not appear that any search warrants period were issued in relation to the case. A case the District Attorney, Willie Meggs classified last week as "A Cluster".

Read the St. Pete Times story RIGHT HERE

Unlike many of our blogging brethren, we won't jump to any conclusions here. Though we will say, the whole mess does not make much sense. Why would Tallahassee police not investigate the claim/report? Why was it not made public until word somehow leaked out...nearly a year later? If Winston was a suspect, why was he not mentioned in the report or in the subsequent alleged investigation? And for that matter, why did Tallahassee police (a) allegedly threaten the victim and (b) not say anything about this until now?

There's also the matter of the victim describing her attacker as a 5-9 to 6-0 male, about 220-240 pounds. Winston is 6-4, 220.

The case is a bit of a distraction for the 10-0 Seminoles as they close in on a BCS berth. The team has 2 games remaining this season one against Idaho and the rivalry game with Florida, both are likely wins
. The question some Sports Writers have asked is "What happens if Winston is suspended?"

The answer is pretty simple, right or wrong, if charged, the discussion of his status may change, but considering how long it took for the allegations to actually emerge, does anyone think this will be resolved before the Seminoles season ends in 2 weeks?