Jameis Winston to Attend Disciplinary Hearing at Florida State Without Being Charged of Anything
ByNeither Jameis Winston nor his coach think the former will miss any time on the football field due to an upcoming disciplinary process at Florida State University (FSU) two years in the making.
According to ESPN, Seminoles head coach Jimbo Fisher is completely confident that his quarterback will be on the field against fifth-ranked Notre Dame and the five following matchups this season. In a letter obtained by Mark Schlabach, FSU notified Winston that he could face up to four student conduct code violations.
Winston was accused of sexually assaulting a female student in Dec. 2012, though she did not bring forth her complaint until Jan. 2013. The case sat idle until Nov. and even then Willie Meggs, a state attorney in Tallahassee, decided against bringing criminal charges on Winston.
"I know the facts of the case. The facts haven't changed in the case," Fisher told ESPN. "We know the report and know everything out there. There's nothing new out there. We've been through this."
Winston did not miss any games last season in relation to the sexual assault allegations, but could this year pending the results of the conduct hearing. His potential punishments run the gamut, anywhere from what is basically a verbal scolding to expulsion.
John Clune, an attorney representing Winston's accuser, told the Wall Street Journal Winston's hearing is strange to him because there are no charges filed. The disciplinary board could wind up using the hearing to determine what to charge Winston with.
"I have never seen a school skip the charging process," Clune said.
FSU plans to use an independent official to lead the hearing, according to the Associated Press, because the school said it wants to "remove any doubt about the integrity." Still, FSU is under federal investigation from the Education Department's Office of Civil Rights due to accusations that administrators mishandled the case.
Penalties from that probe could result in the school being fined up to $35,000 per violation.
The New York Times released an investigative report Friday that established a pattern at FSU of allegedly taking it easy on football players in terms of criminal investigations. FSU responded with a statement addressing "misinformation in the media during the past 10 months."
That also may refer to another Times article from April detailing an all-around failure on the part of the police and the school in investigating the crime.