Why wasnt roethlisberger charged

The woman who accused him in filed a civil suit, which was later settled out of court. The other accuser, who told police that Roethlisberger had raped her in a bathroom stall at a Georgia bar, an accusation supported by statements three of her friends gave police, asked that the case not be prosecuted, concerned that a trial would be "a very intrusive personal experience.

Still, the NFL suspended Roethlisberger for six games, later reduced to four. Yes, Roethlisberger was punished, suspended for four games. But he faced few other consequences. He lost an endorsement deal for jerky, which seems kind of ironic considering that his alleged behavior could be, generously and politely, described as "jerky. Looping back to recent events, Harvey Weinstein, accused of sexual assault and being, in general, a pig, lost his company and will probably never work again in his chosen field — which appears to have been harassing and assaulting young actresses.

Rose McGowan, for one. In a trailer for a new documentary series, McGowan, apparently speaking about Weinstein and her reaction to his denials and rationalizations, says, "I wish I had more middle fingers. Pigs may be pigs, but they'd never behave like Weinstein is accused of behaving. They may be pigs, but they have some standards of acceptable behavior.

Kevin Spacey, accused of sexually assaulting a year-old boy some years back, was killed off his hit Netflix show, "House of Cards," and was disappeared from the series' final season. Matt Lauer disappeared from the Today show after accusations of sexual harassment arose. In Pittsburgh, the reaction among fans was mixed.

Some said they feared it was only a matter of time before Roethlisberger was in trouble again. Jim Gallagher, 54, of Butler, north of Pittsburgh, is a Steelers fan and was critical of the franchise quarterback. Whether he did anything that was against the law, you'll never know," Gallagher said. Morally, I think he's wrong. Ex-Falcons coach Dan Quinn received the game ball after the Cowboys defensive coordinator held his former team out of the end zone in the victory.

It took all of one play for Cam Newton to make a booming announcement to the football world: "I'm back! His second snap resulted in a passing touchdown. Pittsburgh linebacker T. Watt exited Sunday's game against the Lions late in the third quarter with a hip injury and did not return. Roethlisberger could still be punished. Steelers trade Holmes. One Milledgeville resident was frustrated. Garland said the district attorney's decision exonerated the NFL star. He followed me into the bathroom and shut the door behind him.

I still said no, this is not OK, and he then had sex with me. He said it was OK. He then left without saying anything. We left Capital and went to the first police car we saw.

The statement was among hundreds of pages of documents released Thursday by police. Public records show that Roethlisberger owns property on nearby Lake Oconee.

In a statement, bar patron Ann Marie Lubatti told police that the back room of Capital City had been curtained off "and Ben was back there with girls. He was buying everyone shots and just talking and taking pictures with everyone. At this point he was noticeably intoxicated. Lubatti said she watched the 6-foot, 5-inch, pound athlete enter the back room where her friend was.

My friend went to open the door, and it was locked. No one would let us into the room, and the security guards acted like they had no idea what was going on. She said that she told him 'this isn't right,' but he still insisted on having intercourse.

As the night wore on, the student walked down a dingy hallway to a small bathroom, and Roethlisberger soon followed. What happened next remained unclear even after a monthlong investigation. The student told police she had been sexually assaulted, but the medical results were less clear. A doctor who examined her at a nearby emergency room discovered a cut, bruises and vaginal bleeding but could not say if she was raped.

And while some DNA was found, there was not enough to determine whom it belonged to, Bright said. The allegations were more bad news for Roethlisberger, who is being sued by a different woman who says he raped her in at a Lake Tahoe hotel and casino, an allegation he had denied. Roethlisberger was not criminally charged in that case and has claimed counterdamages in the lawsuit.

In Milledgeville, state and local police canvassed the town and began interviewing witnesses. Roethlisberger hired Ed Garland, who has represented a long list of high-profile defendants. And the accuser's family also hired lawyers, who eventually sent a letter to Bright saying the young woman did not want a trial because it would be "a very intrusive personal experience. Garland said that the district attorney's decision exonerated the star quarterback.

He said that he spoke with Roethlisberger Monday and that "he was glad that this matter is over and he's looking forward to going back to football practice next week and having a successful season. Georgia laws set a relatively high bar for proving sexual assault, requiring proof that force was used and that the victim did not consent, said J.

Tom Morgan, a former DeKalb County district attorney. And that can be particularly difficult if both parties were drinking alcohol, he said. As Pittsburgh's first-round draft pick out of Miami of Ohio in , Roethlisberger led the Steelers to Super Bowl victories in and