Big Ben Accused of Rape - Dallas-Mavs.com Forums

MavsWiLLHaVeRinGs · 07-21-2009, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Steelers QB Roethlisberger cancels press conference amid civil lawsuit

NFL.com Wire Reports

Amid allegations of sexual assault, Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger canceled a Thursday press conference that was associated with a reality television show he was scheduled to appear on, a team spokesman said.

Steelers communications coordinator Dave Lockett on Tuesday confirmed details of an earlier report in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. According to the newspaper, the press conference was set to take place at the Steelers' facility to promote Roethlisberger's appearance on a show with NBA star Shaquille O'Neal. The show is scheduled to be taped Friday.

A woman has filed a lawsuit in Reno, Nev., accusing Roethlisberger of sexually assaulting her last summer in his penthouse room at a casino in Lake Tahoe during a celebrity golf tournament.
Ben Roethlisberger , QB
Pittsburgh Steelers

2008 Statistics
Comp/Att: 281/469
Passing Yards: 3,301
TD/INT: 17/15

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he is looking into the allegations against Roethlisberger, one of the biggest names in sports. He has won two Super Bowl titles in his five-year career and is about to report to training camp as the Steelers look to repeat as champions.

"I don't know enough of the details, but it's a civil lawsuit, it's something that we obviously will look into," Goodell said when asked about it in New York during an unrelated news conference. "I've been in touch with the Steelers about it."

Roethlisberger's lawyer adamantly denied the allegations Tuesday.

"Ben has never sexually assaulted anyone," David Cornwell said in a statement. "The timing of the lawsuit and the absence of a criminal complaint and a criminal investigation are the most compelling evidence of the absence of any criminal conduct. If an investigation is commenced, Ben will cooperate fully and Ben will be fully exonerated."

Cornwell didn't immediately reply to a phone message and e-mail seeking more comment.

In speaking with the Associated Press on Tuesday, Lockett said the Steelers are aware of the lawsuit and "gathering information."

Lockett told the Post-Gazette that neither Steelers president Art Rooney II nor coach Mike Tomlin would comment on the lawsuit against Roethlisberger.

"At this point, we've heard his side of the story," Lockett told the newspaper. "We're not expecting to make a statement. All I would say is we're aware of it, it's in litigation and we can't comment on it. That's where we're leaving it at this point."

The lawsuit seeks a minimum of $440,000 in damages from Roethlisberger, at least $50,000 in damages from the Harrah's officials and an unspecified amount of punitive damages "sufficient to deter" the quarterback and the others "from engaging in such conduct in the future."

In the lawsuit, the woman says she didn't file a criminal complaint because she feared Harrah's would side with Roethlisberger and she would be fired.

Teresa Duffy, a spokeswoman for the sheriff's office in Douglas County, which includes part of Lake Tahoe, said no complaints about such an incident were filed with sheriff's deputies or the district attorney's office.

The woman was working as an executive casino host last July when she said Roethlisberger struck up a friendly conversation at her desk during the golf tournament.

The next night -- July 11, 2008 -- she said Roethlisberger telephoned her to tell her that his television sound system wasn't working and asked her to look at it. She said she was unable to find a technician so she handled it herself because she had been told it was important to please the celebrities.

In Roethlisberger's room, the woman said she determined the TV was functioning properly, but as she turned to leave, the 6-foot-5, 240-pound quarterback stood in front of the door and blocked her, the suit claims.

In the lawsuit, the woman said Roethlisberger then grabbed her and started to kiss her. The woman said she was "shocked and stunned that this previously friendly man, that appeared to be a gentleman in her previous contacts with him was suddenly preventing her from leaving, was assaulting her and battering her."

According to the lawsuit, the woman required hospitalization for treatment for depression after the alleged attack.

Efforts to reach the woman Tuesday were unsuccessful.

The woman's lawyer, Calvin R. Dunlap, of Reno, declined to answer questions about the lack of a criminal complaint and why the civil action was brought one year after the incident allegedly took place.
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"Neither I nor our client will be making any comment," Dunlap said in an e-mail to The Associated Press. "We believe the matter should be resolved in court rather than in the media."

The lawsuit also names eight Harrah's employees as defendants and alleges that the cover-up involved the chief of security at Harrah's Lake Tahoe and was carried out with the knowledge of John Koster, president of Harrah's northern Nevada operations.

John Packer, spokesman for the hotel-casino, didn't immediately return a telephone call seeking comment.

Harrah's Entertainment, the hotel-casino's parent company, declined comment.

"We don't comment on pending legal matters," Jacqueline Peterson said from company headquarters in Las Vegas.

According to the lawsuit, Harrah's security chief Guy Hyder gained the trust of the woman's parents while she was hospitalized for depression and persuaded them to give him a key to her home. The woman said Hyder and others then entered her home and allegedly erased information from her computer and confiscated it.

The lawsuit claims that when the woman first reported the attack to Hyder, he dismissed her distress and crying and said she was "overreacting."

The lawsuit also accuses the defendants of defaming the woman. It said they also made false statements about her physical and mental health, including reportedly telling others she was hospitalized for schizophrenia when they knew her "problems arose out of having been sexually assaulted."

Last week, Roethlisberger played in the 20th annual American Century Celebrity Golf Tournament at Lake Tahoe, finishing tied for 30th in the field of 89 golfers. It wasn't immediately known if he stayed at Harrah's.

In 2006, Roethlisberger made his first public appearance at the tournament after having nearly died in a motorcycle accident the previous month.

http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=090...o&confirm=true

Ben is someone most people tend to like, while Kobe was someone who was easy to go after because most people hated him. But don't we now have to give Ben the same treatment as Kobe? Regardless of guilty/innocent.

But apparently there's not even enough evidence to make it a criminal suite, only civil.

chumdawg · 07-21-2009, 11:45 PM

The only consistent move Goodell can make is to suspend Roth indefinitely. You've got a guy in Vick who hustled some dogs and paid his dues to society for it, and he's still not fit for public presentation. If you've got a pig in Roethlisberger who has to rape hotel personnel to get off...well, at the very least he is not fit for public consumption until he addresses the charges, pays his debt to society, and/or is exhonerated by Lord Roger.

Let's hope that the hotel worker gets a treatment at least as good as the dogs did.

Underdog · 07-22-2009, 12:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chumdawg

The only consistent move Goodell can make is to suspend Roth indefinitely. You've got a guy in Vick who hustled some dogs and paid his dues to society for it, and he's still not fit for public presentation. If you've got a pig in Roethlisberger who has to rape hotel personnel to get off...well, at the very least he is not fit for public consumption until he addresses the charges, pays his debt to society, and/or is exhonerated by Lord Roger.

Let's hope that the hotel worker gets a treatment at least as good as the dogs did.

Isn't Ben Roethlisberger white?

(there, I said it...)

chumdawg · 07-22-2009, 12:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Underdog

Isn't Ben Roethlisberger white?

(there, I said it...)

I don't know how white he is, but he definitely seems not too "black"...if we are assuming that black means fighting dogs and all that sort of thing.

I am going to be very, VERY interested in seeing how Goodell handles this. As it stands at the moment, Michael Vick has paid his debt to society--and if not, what reason do we have for a justice system?--and yet Goodell doesn't yet see him fit enough to earn a wage in the NFL. And all Vick did was run some dogs. He didn't rape a hotel clerk.

Justin Credible · 07-22-2009, 01:00 AM

Sounds like the Kobe situation all over again.. Settle out of court without admitting guilt. Girl gets money/Benny gets off (no pun intended).

dirno2000 · 07-22-2009, 01:06 AM

I don't think this is necessarily racial but it is comical that ESPN.com hasn't even reported this. I agree that it sounds fishy but how is it not news that the quarterback of the defending super bowl champion has been accused of rape. If nothing else the fact that it could be a distraction in camp makes it news worthy.

No way they ignore the story if it's TO.

Windmill360 · 07-22-2009, 01:16 AM

I thought this was about Ben Wallace... am I racist?

MavsWiLLHaVeRinGs · 07-22-2009, 01:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Windmill360

I thought this was about Ben Wallace... am I racist?

One of the signs you may be a closet racist.

Dirkadirkastan · 07-22-2009, 01:36 AM

I thought this was about a building.

Darth Ape · 07-22-2009, 02:02 AM

No criminal charges.

Anyone can file a lawsuit. It takes evidence to charge someone with a crime.

Dirkadirkastan · 07-22-2009, 02:15 AM

Unless that person is Mark Cuban, right?

CadBane · 07-22-2009, 02:40 AM

He's Jewish though. They control the media right?

Underdog · 07-22-2009, 02:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CadBane

He's Jewish though. They control the media right?

Yessir!

(I do my part for the Tribe by pulling strings at the prestigious dallas-mavs.com fan forum - we have our fingers in ALL the pies!)

Dirkadirkastan · 07-22-2009, 03:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CadBane

He's Jewish though. They control the media right?

I don't believe you've been on the forum long enough to be familiar with Darth Sh!thead's antics, have you?

GermanDunk · 07-22-2009, 07:30 AM

STEELER EX

(And don´t forget to bring a towel...)

tcat075 · 07-22-2009, 07:54 AM

Why is ESPN refusing to cover this?

Underdog · 07-23-2009, 12:23 PM

Criminal probe unlikely in Roethlisberger rape claim

Un-friggin-believable, considering this case is almost identical to Kobe's...

92bDad · 07-23-2009, 01:39 PM

This is one of those stories and incidents that I hate.

No matter what anyone thinks, someone is a victim here...either the woman, if her story is true, or Big Ben if her story is not true.

Now many will rush to judgement...but much like the Kobe case, and dare I say the OJ case...we may never know the truth.

Now you mix this with what is taking place with Vick, and all of sudden people bring race into it. By the way, what ever became of the Duke Lacrosse case...didn't a bunch of White kids get victimized by a black woman who made false accusations? Was that racially motivated...or just some crazy lady trying to cheat at life?

At the end of the day, we must hold true to innocent until proven guilty...and so far, there are NO criminal charges being filed, thus no reason for the NFL or Roger Goodell to make any moves or statements regarding a "Civil" case.

When it comes to Vick, he was found "Guilty" and yes he served his time...but why rush to let Vick back so soon after being released. How long did it take to reinstate Adam Jones, who had a ton of alleged charges, but last I recall had never been convicted, yet he was still suspended.

With all this stated, if Ben is indeed guilty...then they should throw the book at him as well as everyone who has worked to intimidate and cover up the crime!!! But again...innocent until proven guilty...for that matter if this woman is found to have lied, she should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. She takes away from women who have been or are true victims...again innocent until proven guilty.

As for us fans...we may not be racist, but we are indeed prejudiced, as we tend to pre-judge before we have all the information.

Innocent until proven guilty

DirkFTW · 07-23-2009, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Underdog

Criminal probe unlikely in Roethlisberger rape claim

Un-friggin-believable, considering this case is almost identical to Kobe's...

What'd you expect when a gay man is accused of raping a woman?

alexamenos · 07-23-2009, 02:01 PM

I bet the steeler's wish he'd go back to just riding motorcycles in the offseason.

Flacolaco · 07-23-2009, 02:04 PM

Yeah I bet they're really unhappy with their stud 2x Super Bowl champion.

left texas · 07-23-2009, 03:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tcat075

Why is ESPN refusing to cover this?

They finally do LINK TO ENTIRE ARTICLE

"I did not sexually assault Andrea McNulty," Roethlisberger said. The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback said Saturday was the first he learned of the allegations, detailed in a civil suit filed by McNulty.

Roethlisberger said he would "respond to her outrageous allegations in the appropriate forum."

McNulty, a 31-year-old Lake Tahoe casino hostess, filed a civil lawsuit alleging the Super Bowl winning quarterback raped her in a hotel penthouse last year.

"I would never, ever force myself on a woman," Roethlisberger said.

FINtastic · 07-23-2009, 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chumdawg

I don't know how white he is, but he definitely seems not too "black"...if we are assuming that black means fighting dogs and all that sort of thing.

I am going to be very, VERY interested in seeing how Goodell handles this. As it stands at the moment, Michael Vick has paid his debt to society--and if not, what reason do we have for a justice system?--and yet Goodell doesn't yet see him fit enough to earn a wage in the NFL. And all Vick did was run some dogs. He didn't rape a hotel clerk.

You leave out PETA in all of this. If Big Ben had raped some farm animals, now THAT would have been a crime.

Stranger · 07-23-2009, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Underdog

Criminal probe unlikely in Roethlisberger rape claim

Un-friggin-believable, considering this case is almost identical to Kobe's...

I think the difference is that the woman filed a criminal charge in the Kobe case. The settlement came afterwards and she then dropped the charge.

That doesn't explain, however, ESPN burying the story.

MavsWiLLHaVeRinGs · 07-23-2009, 04:34 PM

Differences between this case and Kobe's.

1. The woman filed a criminal charge against Kobe.
2. There was actually some evidence. (but even then no conviction)

Flacolaco · 07-23-2009, 05:09 PM

I guess it's hard for ESPN to cover things from the Yankee Club House and Valley Ranch.

92bDad · 07-23-2009, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FINtastic

You leave out PETA in all of this. If Big Ben had raped some farm animals, now THAT would have been a crime.

You mean like a bird, a Cardinal for example or a Seahawk?

FINtastic · 07-23-2009, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 92bDad

You mean like a bird, a Cardinal for example or a Seahawk?

Wasn't it the refs that did that to the Seahawks?

DirkFTW · 07-23-2009, 09:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FINtastic

Wasn't it the refs that did that to the Seahawks?

The blunt instrument is still intimately involved in the crime.

CadBane · 07-23-2009, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FINtastic

You leave out PETA in all of this. If Big Ben had raped some farm animals, now THAT would have been a crime.

Not in Sweden it wouldn't.

wmbwinn · 07-23-2009, 09:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexamenos

I bet the steeler's wish he'd go back to just riding motorcycles in the offseason.

Now, that is funny. I don't care who you are...

bobatundi · 07-23-2009, 10:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dirkadirkastan

Unless that person is Mark Cuban, right?

Actually the suit brought against Cuban was a civil suit as well.

Darth Ape · 07-25-2009, 03:40 PM

Mark Cuban on his blog:

Quote:

Remember when it was common for streakers and others to run out on a field ? Happened all the time. Why shouldnt it? You run on the field. You get chased. All the while the TV cameras point at you. As you run, you are already imaging the props you are going to get from all of your buddies. Sure you are going to get tackled by some security guard at some point. Maybe you even get clotheslined by a lineman. Then you get arrested and you pay your fine. But when you get home. Its all smiles and beers while you watch the replay over and over. It may the only chance you ever got to make SportsCenter.
Thats the price to pay for fame back in the 80s and 90s. Getting tackled and a fine.

Then one day the TV networks made a conscious decision to stop showing streakers and other runners that interrupted our games. They recognized it only encouraged them.
In this decade of digital media and internet everywhere, you dont have to run out on the field to get noticed. You just sue someone or you accuse someone of doing something.

It doesn’t matter if its true. Just put out a press release announcing the suit. This is America. You can sue anyone for anything. Maybe you have to pay for the lawyer. Maybe the lawyer does it on retainer or for the PR value. The bigger the Celeb. The more the PR. The more famous you are. Celebs should be used to this stuff. Its just the price of fame, right ?

Of course the claims don’t have to be legitimate. In the USA the case may be tossed out of court. It may be laughed out of court. But the minute it hits the AP, its online and its news forever. Not only is it news. it takes on a life of its own. Bloggers talk about it. Bloggers talk about the bloggers talking about it. Bloggers talk about the bloggers who are not talking about it. The bloggers who are not talking about it, talk about it by talking about why they wont talk about it.

Hats off to ESPN for not talking about the lawsuits that are out there simply because they are being filed. Its today’s version of the guy running out on the field. If the media that actually has more than 15 readers ignore it, we just might see a lot less of it.