Watching the press briefing on CNN about the allegation of sexual assault involving Ben Roethlisberger, and no charges have been filed and there really is no news. Here is what I really don’t understand- I can understand not releasing info about the alleged victim, but why can’t they at least say what he is alleged to have done? Isn’t there a police report?
Any lawyers know?
And why the hell is he out in bars at that hour without security? What the hell is he thinking?
ReNewMan
Do you think she busted his balls about his performance?
Bret
Two words: Concussions.
J.W. Hamner
Dude definitely needs a better entourage.
burnspbesq
Punch line from one of my favorite John Hiatt songs:
“I get so easily led
when my little head does the thinking.”
I believe that’s most of your answer.
willf
Security to protect him from all those co-eds?
General Egali Tarian Stuck
I ain’t touching this thread with a ten foot pole.
General Egali Tarian Stuck
@willf:
In case he wrong turns and ends up in Cleveland. Woof! woof!
John Cole
@willf: To protect himself from getting in stupid situations.
Just Some Fuckhead
He wasn’t very bright BEFORE all the concussions.
Punchy
He was in Vegas last year at the same time I was, and while I’m not pretty enough or rich enough to get into the same bars as him, he was in the club that our hotel (Encore) ran and we talked to a ton of people the next morning who witnessed that he partied his ass off and was basically crazy-stupid nuts in the club. FWIW….
He also bought the entire club a round of drinks, so that’s pretty cool.
Calvin Jones and the 13th Apostle
And why the hell is he out in bars at that hour without security?
Supposedly, he did have security. They were under orders to find women to bring him and his buddies(kind of like one of those private “rooms” in a strip club). Big Ben has a history of this kind of behavior according to things I’ve read.
Surly Duff
And why the hell is he out in bars at that hour without security?
Well, maybe he was with the Steelers O-line. They don’t give him any protection during the games either.
freelancer
Nevermind, I initially read that as the opposite of what Cole intended.
Zifnab
Whoa, slow down there sport. Are you suggesting the news media actual does any reporting? Ben will give a press conference. The victim’s lawyer will give a press conference. And then you’ll have two former basketball players and some goofy dude with a mustache interview Nancy Grace in the ongoing debate on which one should be lynched at dawn.
No one’s going to go through all the trouble of checking a police report.
DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio
@Just Some Fuckhead:
Bingo. The guy appears to be an accident looking for a place to happen.
geg6
According to all the local news reports, Ben did have his security detail with him. He apparently never stayed in any one bar more than an hour or so and he bought rounds for the bar everywhere he went. Reports have also been made that he was not drinking that night himself.
There has been no specific allegations, though. And I find that a little weird.
Whatever happened here, Ben should keep his stupid ass out of bars. He does it here all the time and I’ve even been a few places when he came in and bought for everyone. Never saw him act in any way that embarrassed him, though. A total gentleman and nice to fans.
But who knows what he does when he’s out of town?
James Hare
@Surly Duff:
OOOOOHHH BURRRRRNNNNNN1!!11!!!!
They’re better than the Redskins’ o-line!
Keith G
Damn crazy straight people. Good thing they can’t be preachers or soldiers.
Oh, wait.
asiangrrlMN
I think many athletes are so used to being treated like gods and getting everything they want (why shouldn’t they), they think they are above the law. They don’t think any woman would turn them down (most don’t, probably), and they act accordingly. I would hazard a guess that Big Ben couldn’t even fathom a woman saying no to him.
ETA: This is sheer speculation, of course, as we don’t know what, if anything, happened.
ThatLeftTurnInABQ
And how is that supposed to work?
[Big Ben]: I’m hiring you to follow me around off-hours and tell me not to do stupid stuff when I’m drunk.
[Me]: Okey-dokey. I can use the work.
…later than night
[Me]:Ben! Don’t do that! It’s stupid!
[Ben (drunk)]: What?
[Me]: Ben!
[Ben (drunk)]: I can’t heeer u man. The loud is too music!
[Me (shouting)]:BEN! DON”T DO THAT! IT’S STUPID!
[Ben (drunk)]: Fired you are so, dude! I’m mean DUDE YOU ARE SO FIRED!
Don’t get me wrong – that sounds like nice work if you can get it. But man, the U6 measure is going to take a hell of a beating. Somebody better check with Krugman to see if this is kosher.
danimal
Ever so competitive, the Steelers QB is trying to keep up with the AFC North rival Bengals and Ravens in the all-important “run-in with law enforcement” competition.
But look out AFC North, my Chargers in sunny SD have been making a lot of progress and could overtake you with one more off-season arrest and conviction.
D-Chance.
Maybe out for a little Massa-ge in the wee hours of the morning?
Just Some Fuckhead
It sounds so tranquil and orderly when white athletes do security. Not like a posse or gang or whatever.
Morbo
Wait, what? Is this “sexual assault again” or “sexual assault still?” If it’s the former then WTF, FFS.
Max
What’s even more ridiculous is that all this is coming after the whole Tahoe incident.
I’m not saying he was guilty in Tahoe, but for fucks sake Johnny, get a clue.
Fool me once, shame on you, fool me, you can’t get fooled again.
asiangrrlMN
@Morbo: Methinks it’s ‘again’, but don’t quote me on that.
Jamey
Worthlessburger is the Steel City’s version of Ken Clean-Air System–“He has a small chunk of brain lodged in his skull.”
eemom
this is a football player, right?
Brachiator
If the police are still investigating and have not charged him with any crime, then he is not yet alleged to have done anything.
However, the news report so far is as follows:
But as I noted, no formal charges have been filed.
I don’t know. This seems like stupid behavior for a superstar quarterback with a wonky civil suit dogging him.
Chad S
Its delayed because he left the state without giving a statement probably. PacBen needs to be more careful at the very least, or has some major problems.
PanAmerican
He has more than the garden variety NFL head injury history:
gbear
The Vikings were in serious competition for that award for a few years, but they seem to have calmed down a bit (and realized that they shouldn’t have sex parties on Lake Minnetonka).
Shinobi
Yes, they should please hurry up telling us what exactly he is alleged to have done, so we can figure out how it was her fault.
“She should have known better than to be in the same room as Ben Roethlisberger while she HAD BREASTS. Everyone knows having breasts will get you assaulted, she probably had a vagina too, lets face it she was ASKING FOR IT. “
Mark S.
Security? The couple of times I’ve seen NFL players in bars they didn’t have security.
ajr22
Julius Peppers bought the club 250 bottles of $350 champagne last night. NFL players do it right.
asiangrrlMN
@gbear: No kidding. Now, it’s just illegal dieting substances.
Annie
Way too much speculation. Did he do what we are not even sure what he allegedly was supposed to have done?
I just read in another comment that some people are wondering why a 20 year old was in a club anyway? Is Ben a pig or a buddy? Or a pig buddy?
tyrese
he used to wear a What would Jesus Do bracelet, so that should have been your first sign that he was an immoral rapist.
Martin
@General Egali Tarian Stuck: Exactly my thought. Can someone bring up gay marriage and Matt Taibbi in this thread so that I can get every topic I know better than to weigh in on taken care of in one place?
[Edit] Toss in the public option while you’re at it.
Redshirt
My unsourced rumours (crazy Steeler fans) tell me Big Ben is something of a walking Rape Gang. Lots and lots of sordid tales in the past. No idea of course what the facts are in this particular case, but as they say, lot’s of smoke coming from this QB.
Mr Furious
That goes for ever pro athlete from Mo Vaughn flipping his SUV on the way home from the strip club to Ray Lewis and Plaxico.
There’s just too much at stake for the athlete and the team to risk dumb-ass bar fights escalating into stabbings and shootings, or a drive home with one too many.
If it isn’t part of every contract, if I’m an agent I tell my client that he needs to hire someone whose specific job it is to watch out for this shit.
DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio
@Martin:
Okay, you asked for it.
And yes, it’s a real game, and that’s what they really call it.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
Apparently, Rahm Emanuel had this young woman level charges against Big Ben to prevent him from voting for American Idol. Eric Massa will tell-all tomorrow on Glenn Beck.
Tax Analyst
@tyrese:
Ben probably figures Jesus would don a Steeler’s t-shirt and then heal him if he got the clap from one of these encounters.
Pennsylvanian
@Shinobi: A bit early to be predicting victim-bashing in this case, and you have to admit that the woman in Nevada has a lack of credibility given the fact that she was allegedly bragging about having sex with him to her co-workers, never filed a police report or went to the hospital and is only seeking fiancial remedy in a civil suit.
None of that appears to be the case in this instance, as reports have already been made that the alleged victim went to the hospital and was released and the police are involved.
gwangung
Young male superstar in a popular sport?
It’s NEVER too early to victim-bash….
goblue72
Why exactly does a grown man need a paid babysitter to keep him from drinking and driving or assaulting women or abusing animals or whatever? Personal responsibility and all that shite.
And I don’t care how much money Big Ben gets to throw interceptions.
AhabTRuler
@John Cole: That’s just idiotic. What, two guys with armpit holsters and no necks are going to tell Mr. Multi-millionaire what to do.
Just like with Pacman, the security say “sir, I don’t think you should do this…” and they’re done. What are they gonna do, draw on him?
“Drop the girl and come out with your hands up and everything else down!”
demo woman
Even the local news has been strangely odd the this one. The police had said sexual manipulation??? hmmm
IMO, I think he could have found an attorney other than Garland. She also hired an attorney.
Shinobi
@Pennsylvanian:
Has there ever actually been a sexual assault case wherein the victim wasn’t at some point blamed? Because I’m going to go with no.
It’s not about Ben per se but just the way sexual assault and rape cases are handled by our society, especially when a male celebrity is involved. I’m just being preemptively snarky.
Allan
Must… find… pussy…
Bubblegum Tate
I’m a big-time Big Ben fan, but he does seem like the type to go to the club, get hammered, and rub up on women on the dancefloor. Which is not behavior I’m interested in defending (I see it pretty much every time I DJ in a club, and it’s gross), but I too am wondering what the actual criminal charge is here.
The Moar You Know
Raping. Duh.
EdTheRed
“I’m Keith Hernandez…”
nutellaontoast
I have a better idea:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4wTFuaV8VQ
Captain Goto
>>Isn’t there a police report?
Yes. It was attached to the story at the Post-Gazette online. Also a long audio clip from the news conference.
It sounded to me like the local sheriff/police chief was very careful, but he didn’t sound like he was holding back on anything if they had clear information to release.
Note that this info is now several days old.
UPDATE: It looks like the .pdf of the police report has been removed. Now there’s only a statement from Ben’s lawyer.
Bill H
Wait a minute on the San Diego Chargers thing. The champagne bottle that narrowly missed the girl’s head in the night club merely “slipped out of his hand.” As the tacklephobic Cromartie was waving at her, apparently. Anyway, he’s not a Charger any more, he’s a Jet. Which may explain the lack of tackling in the playoff game. Or does the lack of tackling explain the trade?
MCA
@AhabTRuler and goblue72 – I think the benefit is more in having a deterrent to third party aggressors, and a built-in witness to boot. There are plenty of meatheads out there who, if they get drunk enough, think it’d be a good idea to go pop off to an athlete and potentially find themselves in the middle of an altercation. Having an entourage helps keep that riff-raff away, and if things get out of hand, acting as their advocate. Also, I know there’s gender politics here, but if you’re a male athlete and you’re out to score with the ladies, I don’t think it’s a terrible idea to want to have some witnesses around to vouch for your gentlemanly behavior. Yes, it’s too bad a famous person can’t just go hang with the proletariat and have a few drinks anymore, but I don’t really blame most of these guys for bringing the party with them when they go out in public to anywhere where there’s lot of alcohol around.
Tom
That’s what happens when millionaires get drunk. Julius Peppers did the same thing at 2:30 am at a Chicago club over the weekend.
I can’t say I’m too impressed. It’s probably the monetary equivalent of us regular folks buying our buddy a beer.
soonergrunt
Wow. The amount of judgement-rushing on here is just amazing.
This guy isn’t charged with anything, and there is no evidence whatsoever that he actually did anything other than go to a bar, which he’s legally entitled to do.
He’s already had to deal with one false allegation. Now there’s something that might be something if only something else happens that’s not something.
Some of you are actually joking about this.
Guess what? Sometimes (about 45% according to two different studies done in the 1990s) women lie about being raped.
Men and women lie about everything under the sun, sex especially.
Sometimes the lack of physical evidence is because no evidence was left because NO CRIME TOOK PLACE.
In today’s world (and it’s been like this for about 20 years) men get usually get arrested just based on the accusation, even when there’s no evidence other than the claim, often second- or third-hand that rape took place.
You want to destroy a man’s life in less than a week? Accuse him of rape.
What wonderful timing this shit is. Why do I know about this stuff and why do I feel the way I do? It’s simple, really.
Ed in NJ
Sexual manipulation sounds like unwanted touching to me, perhaps he grabbed her breasts or forced her hands on his package. Just speculating here, though.
What amazes me is the continued lack of judgement on Big Ben’s part, whether he is guilty or not. He cracked his head open in a motorcycle accident because he wasn’t wearing a helmet. The first allegations vs. him were the result of him asking a casino worker to his hotel room, where he was alone, to “fix his television”. Now he’s trolling bars known to be frequented by sorority girls in a college town.
Natalie Gulbis must have really fucked him up, because he seems to have regressed to a 17 year old social retard.
danadevin74
Tiger Woods got more scathing press than this
not many people seem to be talking about it
but if it had been a black athlete would have been everywhere
even if it was just an accusation
asiangrrlMN
@soonergrunt: Your story is horrific. But, rape does happen, too. And when it does, it should be prosecuted. Too often, famous people are held to different standards. I am not making any judgment on Ben either way, but I know that when the Kobe situation happened, the overwhelming response was to blame the woman involved. So, the pendulum swings both ways.
Sam Hutcheson
The fact that you were wrongfully accused in no way implicates this is a similar case. The studies you cite, with the 45% numbers, have been debunked multiple times.
If this were a first allegation it would be reasonable to give benefit of doubt to the accused. After Tahoe, and with common rumor of Roethlisberger’s similar behavior, there’s no reason to do that here. If you’re on a jury, you have to assume innocence. On the internets, not so much.
bjkeefe
I agree with @soonergrunt: Once someone is accused of something like “sexual assault,” it often becomes in many people’s minds the same thing as “he definitely did it, and any news to the contrary is just proof of the cover-up, because he’s a rich athlete, …, etc.”
I am not saying there aren’t inequities in our system, especially as it pertains to powerful people taking advantage of people without power. But that doesn’t mean we should accept every accusation that we hear about third-hand as beyond question. In an ideal world, the accused would be afforded as much privacy as the accuser in cases like this, at least until it is established that there’s sufficient grounds to proceed with prosecution, if not sufficient evidence to find the accused guilty.
Roger Moore
@asiangrrlMN:
Because it would be irresponsible not to speculate.
J. Michael Neal
@Sam Hutcheson: Oh, just stab him in the neck.
Jeff Fecke
@Sam Hutcheson:
Precisely. Okay, I can see Roethlisburger getting one false accusation against him (although frankly, the woman’s statement in the Tahoe case is pretty compelling). It does happen, albeit not on the same order as the 45% claimed above.
But twice? On opposite sides of the country? That sounds a lot more like a pattern of behavior than a coincidence.
As for why Roethlisburger didn’t have security stopping this — it’s because when your boss wants to rape someone, he usually isn’t going to want you getting in the way.
At any rate, we’ll let the story develop. Maybe Roethlisburger won’t be charged at all. And if not — well, you don’t lose your freedom over an accusation in this country.
But that doesn’t mean I can’t pass judgment. I feel comfortable saying that the guy’s a douchebag. I just hope he doesn’t hurt any more women than he already has.
soonergrunt
@Sam Hutcheson:
First, they haven’t been debunked. Not that I’ve seen from a reliable source, anyway.
Second, the first accusation is in a civil case with the lower standards of proof. The Pittsburg press has, understandably, been all over this story. The plaintiff’s settlement demand and other facts as entered into evidence by Rothlisburger are interesting reading.
The same level of analysis and thought that allows you to consider that to be a remotely credible claim is behind your debunking claim.
Hann1bal
Hey, that’s my town he chose for barhopping/groping purposes. I’m not sure whether to be flattered or pissed.
soonergrunt
@Jeff Fecke: Which statement of the Tahoe woman’s case is compelling?
The statements where she bragged about having sex with Rothlisberger? Or do you find the jokes she told about having sex with Rothlisberger and maybe being pregnant compelling?
There is no pattern of anything here. Rothlisberger may be a sex-addict, or guy who simply screws everything that moves in his vicinity, or he may be somebody who committed a crime against somebody in Georgia and had sex with somebody in Lake Tahoe who is now cashing in.
He may even be totally innocent.
soonergrunt
@asiangrrlMN:
Rape certainly does happen to women, and it should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. No argument there.
I don’t know if Rothlisberger is guilty of a crime in connection with the incident in Georgia or not. Nobody here does. The allegations in the Tahoe case seem like a load of crap, given everything known about that case. If I were Rothlisberger, I’d demand that it go to trial. But take a look at the statements made in this thread, and tell me that the presumption of innocence is intact. The fact is that it goes out the window the moment that rape is alleged.
And when you point out that too often the famous have different standards, you’re right. If Ben Rothlisberger, NFL Quarterback were Ben Jones, Network Analyst, or Ben Smith, Human Resources Recruiter, he’d have lost his house and his job defending the accusation in the best case, and most likely would’ve gone to prison for a long time. He gets what he gets because he has the money to defend himself.
Sam Hutcheson
Just damn.
Sam Hutcheson
You mean the press in Pittsburgh is finding the moral courage to defend the local star quarterback?
Wow. Who’d have thought.
I’m sorry you got screwed over so badly. That really sucks. But it doesn’t mean Ben Roethlisberger deserves the benefit of doubt here. Outside of strict legal process, he doesn’t, and the fact that the “court of public opinion” in Pittsburgh is on his side is less than meaningless. The press in Atlanta spent months if not years defending Michael Vick, and he *still* has fans in the city.
If he is not convicted, that’s the legal system’s process. Every moral sign indicates that he’s an overgrown, predatory jock who feels he’s entitled to any woman he decides he “deserves.” Here’s hoping for another helmetless impact sooner rather than later.
Captain Goto
Every moral sign indicates that he’s an overgrown, predatory jock who feels he’s entitled to any woman he decides he “deserves.” Here’s hoping for another helmetless impact sooner rather than later.
“moral sign”?????
Do they post those alongside the road?
Sam, you don’t know shit.
Sam Hutcheson
Yes. You’d see them if your head wasn’t so far up your ass.
jayjaybear
All I have to say is that Terry Bradshaw never got in trouble for sexual assault. Not once.
AxelFoley
Terry Bradshaw couldn’t even spell “sexual assault” if you gave him the “exual” and the “assaul”.
Yeah, I said it. ;-)
Casey Torrecillas
Ben Roethlisberger is on the list of dumbest men within the National football league. In the event he is not necessarily guilty of sexual assault, how do you make it possible for yourself to get in such a situation twice during the course of less than a year. The Steelers have to make a heavy verdict concerning whether they desire him to stay the face of the team. This may be a massive stain for one of the class organizations in the National football league.