What do you think of Ben Roethlisberger and his "situations"?

[OceanAnnie]

This is the second time he has been in the spotlight for sexual assault. The first time seemed a little "iffy" to me, just from reports from all sides. I didn't know what to think.

Now there was recently another case, but isn't going to be pursued. Two cases of sexual assault in a year (? I think the last one was within the past year)? Something seems to be going on with this guy. What do you think?


http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/04/12/roethlisberger.charges/index.html?hpt=Sbin

Roethlisberger won't face criminal charges, DA says

CNN) -- Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will not face criminal charges after he was accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a nightspot, a Georgia prosecutor said.

Roethlisberger was accused of attacking a 20-year-old woman in the bathroom of a Milledgeville, Georgia, bar and restaurant called Capital City.

"The sexual allegation against Mr. Roethlisberger cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt," Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit District Attorney Fred Bright said. "Therefore, there will be no arrest made, nor criminal prosecution of Mr. Roethlisberger for his actions here on March 5, 2010."

Police talked to Roethlisberger, 28, and the woman at the scene immediately after the incident was reported at the nightclub. The woman alleged that Roethlisberger was the perpetrator.

The woman, however, also made it clear that she did not want to pursue charges, Bright said. Her desire did not influence his decision not to prosecute, Bright said.

The woman was part of a group mingling at the club with Roethlisberger's friends, authorities said. The groups had been bar-hopping separately earlier in the evening, authorities said.

Roethlisberger followed the woman into a bathroom at the club, and "significant questions about what occurred persist," Bright said, reiterating that he did not have enough evidence to prosecute successfully.

The doctor who examined the woman told investigators that he could not tell whether bruising on her genitals was from sexual assault, Bright said.

A rape-evidence kit found a small amount of male DNA but not enough to create a profile, he said.

Bright said that if there had been enough evidence to prosecute, he would have.

"We are not condoning Mr. Roethlisberger's actions that night, but we do not prosecute morals," he said. "We prosecute crimes."

Roethlisberger has guided the Steelers to two Super Bowl championships.

Last year, a civil complaint filed against Roethlisberger also alleged sexual assault. He denied the allegation made by an executive casino host at Harrah's Lake Tahoe in Nevada, saying, "Her false and vicious accusations are an attack on my family and on me; I would never, ever force myself on a woman."

Roethlisberger and eight Harrah's employees are named in the suit, which seeks at least $390,000, plus unspecified punitive damages, from the defendants.

 

[dzneelvr]

I'm not familiar with this QB but if he does have a family (which I read as a wife and kids), maybe he better spend his time with them instead of bars and clubs that can lead to "situations"there's so many groupies and bar-flies out there just waiting for their 15 minutes of fame that you can't believe all the victim slants but to disrespect his family members? at what point will he just grow up and leave the single life behind?

 

[N.Bailey]

Everyone thought Micheal Jackson was guilty just because he paid out instead of fighting those initial allegations. Little did we know, MJ wanted to fight those allegations but the insurance company demanded that they settle. Had I been a juror at his criminal trial, I too would have found him not guilty. Though I am aware that many of you might not agree with that.

I say, leave it to the courts. If BR's has done something criminal, let him be held accountable, but it appears that there will be NO criminal charges in either incidence. That alone tells me a lot.

If the first girl was assaulted, the one now seeking the almighty dollar rather than criminal prosecution, the burden will be all her's. She's made allegations and has said her computer had been used in the process. If her computer provides no forensic evidence against Ben, I'd have to say her charges are erroneous. I've read that Ben is also counter suing and if he's innocent, I say, good for him.

At the end of the day, these guys have millions $$$$$ of reasons why they are targets. Proof should be demanded 100% in cases like these. Idle speculation means nothing.

 

[N.Bailey]

I'm not familiar with this QB but if he does have a family (which I read as a wife and kids), maybe he better spend his time with them instead of bars and clubs that can lead to "situations"there's so many groupies and bar-flies out there just waiting for their 15 minutes of fame that you can't believe all the victim slants but to disrespect his family members? at what point will he just grow up and leave the single life behind?

I don't know where you read that, but he is most definitely not married and has no children. At least none that the public is aware of.

 

[simba928]

I'm not familiar with this QB but if he does have a family (which I read as a wife and kids), maybe he better spend his time with them instead of bars and clubs that can lead to "situations"there's so many groupies and bar-flies out there just waiting for their 15 minutes of fame that you can't believe all the victim slants but to disrespect his family members? at what point will he just grow up and leave the single life behind?

He does not have a family. He is a 28 (I think) year old, single, $100 million quarterback. The family he is talking about are his dad, stepmom, and sister (who plays college basketball at Oklahoma and made it to the final four the past two years).

And, BTW, the first one actually happened almost two years ago. He was served with papers (is that the correct term?) at a golf event in Lake Tahoe in June/July for a situation that supposedly happened a year earlier when he was there for the same golf event.

Nobody, except for him and the accuser know what happened. My personal opinion is that they did have sexual relations then he did something she didn't like (whether that was not giving her his phone number, leaving her at the bar/club, not taking her back to his hotel, telling her it was a one-night thing, etc.) and she got ticked. I believe that is what happened the first time, too. I'm not saying he was not an idiot for putting himself in the same situation not once, but twice. I don't believe, though, that he did anything illegal.

I do find it interesting, though, that nobody has brought up that idiotic disaster that is Santonio Holmes. Ben has 2 incidents against him, neither of which have been proven. Santonio, on the other hand, has multiple counts against him, most of which have been proven. He choked his baby's mother. He posted nude pictures of himself online (I don't know whether he did it or sent them to someone that posted it, but either way they ended up online). On his twitter account he told someone to go kill themselves. He is a far worse person to have around than Ben. He is a Super Bowl MVP that got traded for a fifth round draft pick just today (hours after he tweeted about how Pittsburgh is the best place ever). I think it is very sad that he is overlooked and Ben is constantly targeted. Not the Ben doesn't deserve a little slap upside the head for being stupid, but nobody is criticizing Santonio while everybody is on the "let's hate Ben" bandwagon.

 

[FINFAN]

if he is anything like other celebs that have stepped out, crossed the line, committed acts of crime and disgust....the media continues to glamorize them, shove them on tv every chance they get and they continue to stay in the spotlight, no real penalties paid..careers still intact...he'll come put more successful than ever.

 

[OceanAnnie]

Everyone thought Micheal Jackson was guilty just because he paid out instead of fighting those initial allegations. Little did we know, MJ wanted to fight those allegations but the insurance company demanded that they settle. Had I been a juror at his criminal trial, I too would have found him not guilty. Though I am aware that many of you might not agree with that.

I say, leave it to the courts. If BR's has done something criminal, let him be held accountable, but it appears that there will be NO criminal charges in either incidence. That alone tells me a lot.

If the first girl was assaulted, the one now seeking the almighty dollar rather than criminal prosecution, the burden will be all her's. She's made allegations and has said her computer had been used in the process. If her computer provides no forensic evidence against Ben, I'd have to say her charges are erroneous. I've read that Ben is also counter suing and if he's innocent, I say, good for him.

At the end of the day, these guys have millions $$$$$ of reasons why they are targets. Proof should be demanded 100% in cases like these. Idle speculation means nothing.

I didn't think the first case had merit, because of several reasons. The biggest reason was the co-workers stating the "victim" had plans so to speak and followed through. But then the co-workers could've been a B.R. fan so who's to know?

The second case, seems as though it would go to trial if there were enough evidence. There isn't.

Just seems odd that he's in these predicaments. I agree with dzneelvr.

 

[OceanAnnie]

He does not have a family. He is a 28 (I think) year old, single, $100 million quarterback. The family he is talking about are his dad, stepmom, and sister (who plays college basketball at Oklahoma and made it to the final four the past two years).

And, BTW, the first one actually happened almost two years ago. He was served with papers (is that the correct term?) at a golf event in Lake Tahoe in June/July for a situation that supposedly happened a year earlier when he was there for the same golf event.

Nobody, except for him and the accuser know what happened. My personal opinion is that they did have sexual relations then he did something she didn't like (whether that was not giving her his phone number, leaving her at the bar/club, not taking her back to his hotel, telling her it was a one-night thing, etc.) and she got ticked. I believe that is what happened the first time, too. I'm not saying he was not an idiot for putting himself in the same situation not once, but twice. I don't believe, though, that he did anything illegal.

I do find it interesting, though, that nobody has brought up that idiotic disaster that is Santonio Holmes. Ben has 2 incidents against him, neither of which have been proven. Santonio, on the other hand, has multiple counts against him, most of which have been proven. He choked his baby's mother. He posted nude pictures of himself online (I don't know whether he did it or sent them to someone that posted it, but either way they ended up online). On his twitter account he told someone to go kill themselves. He is a far worse person to have around than Ben. He is a Super Bowl MVP that got traded for a fifth round draft pick just today (hours after he tweeted about how Pittsburgh is the best place ever). I think it is very sad that he is overlooked and Ben is constantly targeted. Not the Ben doesn't deserve a little slap upside the head for being stupid, but nobody is criticizing Santonio while everybody is on the "let's hate Ben" bandwagon.

Thanks. I was guessing.

Santonio sounds like bad news. I didn't know about him.

 

[Scurvy]

Just seems odd that he's in these predicaments. I agree with dzneelvr.

I don't find it that odd. Unfortunately, there are plenty of people who realize that if they falsely accuse someone who has previously been accused of something, people are more likely to believe them. That may not matter for criminal court, but it will if they intend to sue or to try for a big settlement later. I don't know what happened between Roethlisberger and his accusers, but I don't think the fact that there have been multiple accusations necessarily makes them more likely to be true.

 

[OceanAnnie]

I don't find it that odd. Unfortunately, there are plenty of people who realize that if they falsely accuse someone who has previously been accused of something, people are more likely to believe them. That may not matter for criminal court, but it will if they intend to sue or to try for a big settlement later. I don't know what happened between Roethlisberger and his accusers, but I don't think the fact that there have been multiple accusations necessarily makes them more likely to be true.

On the flip side, it doesn't necessarily make them false either. It cuts both ways. People can be so quick to have $ on the radar that the possibility that something could've happened is diminished because it's all about the money.

 

[N.Bailey]

I didn't think the first case had merit, because of several reasons. The biggest reason was the co-workers stating the "victim" had plans so to speak and followed through. But then the co-workers could've been a B.R. fan so who's to know?

The second case, seems as though it would go to trial if there were enough evidence. There isn't.

Just seems odd that he's in these predicaments. I agree with dzneelvr.

Well, if any allegation can be proven, officials are bound to charge a perp. The fact that they didn't have the evidence to prosecute means, it's a, he said, she said, scenario. Investigators weren't there. All they can do is listen to the allegations, then follow up with the evidence. In this case, the evidence didn't point to guilt or at least guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, so no charges will be filed. There is no crystal ball to say 100% that he didn't rape her, but there isn't evidence to say that he did (which I'd imagine there would have been had he raped her). They couldn't even get a DNA sample from her person. Did he put on a condom to rape her? It doesn't take much semen to get the DNA sequence.

 

[OceanAnnie]

Well, if any allegation can be proven, officials are bound to charge a perp. The fact that they didn't have the evidence to prosecute means, it's a, he said, she said, scenario. Investigators weren't there. All they can do is listen to the allegations, then follow up with the evidence. In this case, the evidence didn't point to guilt or at least guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, so no charges will be filed. There is no crystal ball to say 100% that he didn't rape her, but there isn't evidence to say that he did (which I'd imagine there would have been had he raped her). They couldn't even get a DNA sample from her person. Did he put on a condom to rape her? It doesn't take much semen to get the DNA sequence.

I don't know. You raise some good questions. I have no idea of his guilt or innocence. I read the news and thought, how does he get in these situations? After the first, you would think he would have learned. At some point a person recoils from trouble and closes ranks so to speak. Guilty or not, I imagine it isn't pleasant to go through these accusations.

 

[DebbieB]

I think Ben needs to settle down and stop being the swinging bachelor. He's 28 now, time to settle down. Not a good idea to be hanging out in bars with college students. The Rooneys are not going to put up with anything else, they made that clear with Santonio this morning. There's not only these 2 incidents, there's also his motorcycle accident without a helmet (I actually go through that intersection everyday). Did I hear his attorney say he's never even had a traffic ticket? I thought he was ticketed in the motorcycle accident because he wasn't even licensed for motorcycles, let alone licensed long enough to go helmetless.

 

[Scurvy]

On the flip side, it doesn't necessarily make them false either. It cuts both ways. People can be so quick to have $ on the radar that the possibility that something could've happened is diminished because it's all about the money.

Absolutely, it could either be true or false. No one but those involved can know that at this point. Unfortunately, it probably won't matter if he was innocent, because the accusations might be enough to ruin his reputation forever. The questions will linger forever and his name will be followed by "who was accused of . . ." in articles for years to come.

I tend to be a bit more cynical about situations like this since something similar happened to someone I know. People crawled out of the woodwork to say that they were "almost victims" because he hit on them once (even if nothing inappropriate happened) and everyone assumed the accusations were true. When information came out that showed that the accusations were almost certainly false, that wasn't reported very many places and people still talk about the accusations as though they had merit. This seems to be one of the only crimes where people are "guilty until proven innocent", which is especially unfortunate since it's virtually impossible for someone who was falsely accused to prove that something was consensual.

ETA - I do agree, though, that it's really not smart of him to continue to put himself into situations where someone could accuse him of something. He really ought to have more sense than that. And I hope that if he's actually guilty and does anything like that again, there will be enough evidence to convict him for it.

 

[N.Bailey]

On the flip side, it doesn't necessarily make them false either. It cuts both ways. People can be so quick to have $ on the radar that the possibility that something could've happened is diminished because it's all about the money.

Well, as with the first case, when you want the $$$ without the criminal prosecution, it's really showing your true motivation. You're not wanting someone held accountable for what you are claiming they did to you, you're just wanting to find a fast way to make a quick $$$ that you've not worked for.

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

My take, he is a man who likes to party and have fun. Sadly, he has not come to grips with the type of people that his "celebrity" attracts. The people around him on these nights are not his friends. His friends would keep him out of this kind of trouble.

Not saying that he needs to calm down - but he needs at least one person looking out for him when he is out on the town.

 

[sparklynails23]

The other people in the bar said he was looking for action and disrespectful to the girls there. Where there's smoke there's fire, and he doesn't have the nicest reputation around town. The Steelers should clean up the team by getting rid of Ben with Santonio Holmes. Ben looks like he's had a few too many cases of beer in the off season, anyway.

 

[OceanAnnie]

Well, as with the first case, when you want the $$$ without the criminal prosecution, it's really showing your true motivation. You're not wanting someone held accountable for what you are claiming they did to you, you're just wanting to find a fast way to make a quick $$$ that you've not worked for.

True. But each case stands alone.

 

[N.Bailey]

I think Ben needs to settle down and stop being the swinging bachelor. He's 28 now, time to settle down. Not a good idea to be hanging out in bars with college students. The Rooneys are not going to put up with anything else, they made that clear with Santonio this morning. There's not only these 2 incidents, there's also his motorcycle accident without a helmet (I actually go through that intersection everyday). Did I hear his attorney say he's never even had a traffic ticket? I thought he was ticketed in the motorcycle accident because he wasn't even licensed for motorcycles, let alone licensed long enough to go helmetless.

I was thinking about the charges from the accident as I heard his attorney speaking too. Oh well, you know how lawyers are.