Sexual assault accuser suing Jameis Winston
The woman who accused Jameis Winston of raping her in 2012 filed a civil lawsuit Thursday against the former Florida State quarterback and projected top NFL draft prospect.
Erica Kinsman filed the lawsuit to the Ninth Judicial Circuit Court in Florida. Winston, investigated by Tallahassee police during the fall of 2013 for this incident when he was a redshirt freshman at Florida State, was not charged with a crime.
Kinsman’s attorneys, David King, Baine Kerr and John Clune, are seeking damages greater than $15,000, as well as any “further relief as the Court may deem just and proper,” according to the lawsuit.
The Tampa Bay Times was the first to report this story.
“Jameis Winston … has proven time and time again to be an entitled athlete who believes he can take what he wants,” Clune said in a statement, via The Times. “He took something here that he was not entitled to and he hurt someone. There are consequences for that behavior and since others have refused to hold him accountable, our client will.”
Kinsman alleged that after riding in a cab back to Winston’s apartment in the fall of 2012 that she was raped by Winston in his bedroom. In the lawsuit, she claims that Ronald Darby, a teammate of Winston’s at Florida State, interrupted the alleged incident and said, “Dude, she is telling you to stop.”
Winston has denied any wrongdoing and has maintained the two engaged in consensual sex.
In the suit, Kinsman’s attorneys claim that, “As the direct and proximate result of Defendant’s offensive and harmful contacts, Plaintiff has suffered injuries, damages, and losses — including, without limitation, past and future physical injury, pain and suffering; past and future emotional and mental distress, pain, and suffering; past and future harm to Plaintiff’s education and its opportunities and benefits; impaired earnings capacity, past and future; and past and future losses of the enjoyment of life.”
Kinsman has also filed a federal lawsuit against Florida State alleging the university violated Title IX laws in regards to how it handled her case. Florida State investigated the matter following the state attorney’s decision to not press charges against Winston and decided not to charge Winston in violation of the school’s code of conduct.
The suit also alleges that on Oct. 25, 2013, Kinsman was notified that a second woman alleged she was also sexually assaulted by Winston.
Winston declared for the NFL draft following his redshirt sophomore season in 2014, which ended in a semifinal loss to Oregon in the first College Football Playoff. Many analysts have projected him to go first overall to the Buccaneers in this year’s NFL draft.
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