Say it ain't so, Big Ben.

[ups1990]

Hopefully for Big Ben's sake, the QB of the Steelers, these civil rape allegations are not true.

Big Ben."I did not sexually assault Her"

President Clinton. "I did not have sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky"

A little too similar.

 

[pickup]

Hopefully for Big Ben's sake, the QB of the Steelers, these civil rape allegations are not true.

Big Ben."I did not sexually assault Her"

President Clinton. "I did not have sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky"

A little too similar.

she's got a hard case to prove since the police were never involved.

i think she is suing civilly for a relatively small amount.
Whether he did anything or not, I think he will settle to put it behind him before the season is under way.

 

[Ghost in the Darkness]

I don't like Ben and I despise the Stoolers but this whole story smells fishy. Instinct tells me that she is trying to shake him down, but then again stranger things have happened. It just seems odd she waited so long to come forward about this.

 

[negrosangre]

How can anyone hate the Steelers!!!!! The winningest Super Bowl team, good wholesome, hard working players! You sure don't see the likes of Vick, or players shooting someone or running over people with their cars, etc. Come on! Cheer on the winners for a change!!

 

[ups1990]

It now looks like this Women, is making it very difficult for the public to believe her story. Why bring up this allegation before summer camp? Is she trying to get the biggest bang for her money.(maybe could have used better wording) Something smells fishy here.

 

[User Name]

What is it with the women in colorado???????? Kobe, Ben, sounds like these guys need to stay home more...

 

[tarbar66]

Roethlisberger suspended six games, must undergo evaluation
National Football League


Commissioner Roger Goodell notified Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger Wednesday that he must undergo a comprehensive behavioral evaluation by medical professionals and will be suspended without pay for the first six games of the regular season for conduct detrimental to the NFL in violation of the league’s personal conduct policy.

After consultation with Goodell, Steelers President Art Rooney and the commissioner informed Roethlisberger by telephone Wednesday of the two-step approach that is designed to hold Roethlisberger accountable for his conduct and provide him an opportunity to change his behavior and establish himself as a responsible individual.

In a letter to Roethlisberger, Goodell said that Roethlisberger must adhere to any counseling or treatment that is recommended by the professional evaluators to help him make better decisions and avoid situations that can cause legal or other problems. A professional behavioral evaluation is mandatory for anyone that has violated the personal-conduct policy. Roethlisberger may not attend any team offseason activity after today until he has completed the evaluation and the evaluating professionals confirm with the commissioner that Roethlisberger may resume football activities. If so cleared, Roethlisberger will be able to participate in training camp and preseason games this summer.

The commissioner said he would review Roethlisberger’s progress under the plan prior to the start of the regular season and consider whether to reduce the suspension to four games. Failure to cooperate and follow the plan could result in a longer suspension, Goodell added.

“The personal conduct policy makes clear that I may impose discipline ‘even where the conduct does not result in conviction of a crime’ as, for example, where the conduct ‘imposes inherent danger to the safety and well being of another person’,” Goodell stated in his letter to Roethlisberger. “As the District Attorney concluded, the extensive investigatory record shows that you contributed to the irresponsible consumption of alcohol by purchasing (or facilitating the purchase of) alcoholic beverages for underage college students, at least some of whom were likely already intoxicated. There is no question that the excessive consumption of alcohol that evening put the students and yourself at risk. The personal-conduct policy also states that discipline is appropriate for conduct that ‘undermines or puts at risk the integrity and reputation of the NFL, NFL clubs, or NFL players.’ By any measure, your conduct satisfies that standard.”

Goodell said his review of the matter included the extensive volume of material released by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Milledgeville Police Department; public comments by and a private conversation with Georgia District Attorney Fred Bright; comments and recommendations of Roethlisberger’s representatives; a personal interview with Roethlisberger on April 13; dialogue with current players, former players, the NFL Players Association, and others; and information learned by the NFL office in the course of examining the Milledgeville matter.

Other excerpts from Goodell’s letter:

“I recognize that the allegations in Georgia were disputed and that they did not result in criminal charges being filed against you. My decision today is not based on a finding that you violated Georgia law, or on a conclusion that differs from that of the local prosecutor. That said, you are held to a higher standard as an NFL player, and there is nothing about your conduct in Milledgeville that can remotely be described as admirable, responsible, or consistent with either the values of the league or the expectations of our fans.”

“Your conduct raises sufficient concerns that I believe effective intervention now is the best step for your personal and professional welfare.”

“I believe it is essential that you take full advantage of the resources available to you. My ultimate disposition in this matter will be influenced by the extent to which you do so, what you learn as a result, and a demonstrated commitment to making positive change in your life.”

“In your six years in the NFL, you have first thrilled and now disappointed a great many people. I urge you to take full advantage of this opportunity to get your life and career back on track.”

In addition to the discipline imposed on Roethlisberger, league policy requires that NFL teams remit to the league a portion of a suspended player’s salary starting with the second suspension in a year for violations of the personal conduct or drug policies. The second such suspension in a year results in the club being assessed 25 percent of the suspended player’s forfeited salary to a maximum of $200,000. Prior to the Steelers trading him to the New York Jets, wide receiver Santonio Holmes was suspended for four games for violating the substance abuse program.

I would say this is Ben's last chance!

 

[pickup]

I hate these b.s. suspensions. If it is for four games, then it is four games. If it is six games then six games. Now this story will get more media attention because everyone who follows football will wonder if he will get two games knocked off his sentence. He technicallly did not commit a crime, why is his sentence more harsh than a guy who was caught violating a substance abuse program?

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

I bet he'll learn to keep it in his shorts now.

He is still going to end up writing her a big check.

 

[705red]

I hate these b.s. suspensions. If it is for four games, then it is four games. If it is six games then six games. Now this story will get more media attention because everyone who follows football will wonder if he will get two games knocked off his sentence. He technicallly did not commit a crime, why is his sentence more harsh than a guy who was caught violating a substance abuse program?

Because the NFL has a peronal conduct provision that all players fall under. Ben is the face of the NFL and now 2 different times he has been accused of sexual wrong doing. Something needs to be done, many of these pplayers come from very little in life and then get all this attemtion and money thrown at them. It does not mean they can force themselves on woman, start fights, carry weapons in to clubs and carry on wreck less. IMO

 

[Jones]

The justice system, Roger Goodell style
By Lester Munson
ESPN.com

Relying on the powers granted him under the NFL's personal conduct policy, commissioner Roger Goodell has suspended Ben Roethlisberger for six games and demanded that the quarterback undergo a comprehensive behavioral evaluation. Goodell's decision comes after Georgia authorities evaluated a 20-year-old female college student's allegation of rape and decided not to file criminal charges against Roethlisberger. The commissioner's action raises legal questions. Here are some of the questions and their answers:
If Roethlisberger did not violate the law, how can Goodell suspend him for six games?
The league's personal conduct policy gives Goodell the power to impose discipline even without any violation of the law. The prosecutor's decision not to file charges meant little to Goodell's decision-making process, though the suspension might have been significantly harsher had Roethlisberger been facing a criminal proceeding. Goodell stated that his decision is "not based on a finding that [Roethlisberger] violated Georgia law." However, Goodell did rely on his review of an enormous and detailed investigation and concluded that Roethlisberger's conduct was "detrimental to the league" and was a "danger to the safety and well being of another person."
What was it about Roethlisberger's conduct that caused Goodell to impose so severe a penalty? How bad was it?
Goodell's decision was not difficult. A review of the police investigation of the events in Milledgeville, Ga., on the night of March 4 and in the early-morning hours of March 5 shows that Roethlisberger's alleged conduct easily could be considered disgusting and predatory. Witnesses, according to the investigation's files, said Roethlisberger was drinking steadily the entire evening. One witness told investigators that, "As soon as he was finishing one drink, he would order another." Within minutes after Roethlisberger, two bodyguards (or "personal assistants" if you prefer their terminology) and a few others arrived at the Capital City Club, the police report indicates that he demanded a private bartender, a shot girl and a club bouncer. His instructions were to let only young women into his VIP area.
As he ordered trays of Patron shots, the police report says he yelled, "All my b----es, come and take a shot." When he hit on one of the sorority girls, she responded with a joking expletive and Roethlisberger had her ejected from the VIP area, according to statements from the sorority girl and others. Moments later, one of the bodyguards, according to witness statements, ushered one of the woman's sorority sisters, who was obviously intoxicated, into a dark hallway and left her there for Roethlisberger. When Roethlisberger entered the hallway, he was exposing himself, according to a statement from the young woman who later claimed that Roethlisberger raped her in the bathroom. One of the members of Roethlisberger's entourage told a detective from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation that as they drove back to Roethlisberger's lake house 30 miles away, they were "afraid to ask him what happened," the report says.
If Roethlisberger's conduct was so terrible in the eyes of the NFL, why wasn't he charged with a crime in Georgia?
If District Attorney Fred Bright had filed charges, he would have faced two major problems: (1) the accuser's intoxication; and (2) a finding by a physician who examined the accuser that the physician could not say her injuries were the result of forcible sex. Numerous witnesses told police in detailed, written statements that the accuser was extremely drunk. Clearly in the brownout-blackout stage of intoxication, according to statements from her friends, the accuser had been seen "hanging all over Ben." As she tried to tell a police officer what happened, the report says she was slurring her words and staggering. The officer and three of the accuser's friends agreed that they could not tell whether she was saying "bathroom" or "back room." According to a police interview of one of Roethlisberger's crew, and confirmed in an interview of the officer, Sgt. Jerry Blash, later in the investigation, Blash at one point said, the woman was drunk and "accusing Ben of rape." Another friend of the accuser's told the police the accuser "still appeared to be drunk" the following morning (Friday, March 5). Even though the evidence collected by the investigators indicated that the accuser was apparently too drunk to consent to anything, the prosecutor knew a jury would view her behavior as risky and contributory and would be unlikely to vote to convict Roethlisberger.
The physician who examined the accuser shortly after the incident found bruises, a laceration and blood in her genital area, but the doctor was unwilling to conclude that the injuries were from an assault. That is perhaps the single most curious finding in the entire investigation. How could the doctor reach such a conclusion? It might be the result of the accuser's alcohol-fogged memory. According to the police report, when Sgt. Blash asked her whether she had been raped, she replied, "No, I didn't know what was going on." Asked whether she had sex with Roethlisberger, the report says she replied, "Well, I'm not sure." If the physician heard the same history from the accuser in his examination, it might have led him to conclude that he could not testify about a rape. The doctor's report left a serious gap in the evidence and forced the prosecutor to conclude that he could not file a charge.
The commissioner wants Roethlisberger to undergo a complete behavioral evaluation. Is it because Goodell took into account a pattern of behavior?
Yes. In addition to the Milledgeville incident, there is the sexual assault damages lawsuit filed in Reno, Nev., by a hotel concierge who says Roethlisberger lured her to his room on a pretext and raped her in July 2008, as well as an unrelated and unconfirmed incident detailed in the police report and put in front of Goodell. With the possibility that Roethlisberger has been involved in more than just the Milledgeville case, it is easy to see why Goodell is requiring a total evaluation of Roethlisberger and his behavioral tendencies.
How will the NFL Players Association react to Goodell's decision?
Although the players agreed to the terms of the personal conduct policy more than three years ago, the union is likely to challenge Goodell's actions concerning Roethlisberger. The union's duty is to represent its constituency even when the conduct of the player might have been reprehensible. Any players' union wants the commissioner to know that the union will challenge a decision such as this, no matter how reasonable the decision might be. DeMaurice Smith, the union leader, is likely to file a grievance and ask for an arbitrator's review of the sanctions imposed on Roethlisberger.
The union will challenge the six-game suspension, but its real challenge will be to the demand for a behavioral evaluation, likely to be a degrading requirement for Roethlisberger. It is a new form of punishment, and the union will want to send a signal that it is not happy with this level of invasion into the life of one of its players. Roethlisberger obviously will be put into the NFL's substance abuse program with its weekly and even daily alcohol checks, but the total evaluation requirement takes this a step beyond the alcohol program. My expectation is that the union will file a grievance and demand an arbitration. Only if Roethlisberger objects to the grievance will the union drop it. He might want to avoid further examination of the incident and show some level of contrition by waiving the grievance.
Lester Munson, a Chicago lawyer and journalist who reports on investigative and legal issues in the sports industry, is a senior writer for ESPN.com.