Ex-DA in Georgia on 2010 Roethlisberger case: Didn't have a case

[SteelCrazy]

The former Ocmulgee (Ga.) Judicial Circuit district attorney, who in 2010 declined to prosecute Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for an alleged rape, says he has no opinion about Roethlisberger's years-long decision to use a fictional hometown in his Steelers media guide profile.

"That's between (Roethlisberger) and his hometown," says Fred Bright, the now retired Georgia prosecutor. "I've never been to Findlay (Ohio). My job as a prosecutor is to determine whether or not I have a prosecutable case, which we did not."

While Roethlisberger prepares for his AFC wild card playoff game against the Dolphins Sunday in Steel City - nearly seven years removed from the rape allegation in Milledgeville, Ga. - the two-time Super Bowl champion appears to still hold a grudge against his real hometown of Findlay, Ohio, where he grew up and was a high school football star.

According to a recent Sports Illustrated profile, Roethlisberger switched his hometown from Findlay to the fictitious Cory Rawson in the team media guide starting in 2010, after the Milledgeville case concluded with Bright's decision not to prosecute the QB. The SI profile says that Roethlisberger is still bitter with Findlay residents for the way he was treated after the rape allegation in Georgia surfaced.


Roethlisberger was investigated but never charged in the Milledgeville case, nor was he charged in Nevada, where a woman named Andrea McNulty accused Roethlisberger of sexually assaulting her in 2008 in Lake Tahoe. McNulty filed a civil suit against Roethlisberger, and a settlement was reached for an undisclosed amount.

Bright says today that he has no lingering doubts about his decision in 2010.

"It wasn't a difficult decision," says Bright. "I'm a prosecutor seeking justice, and we did not have a case. It was not even a close call."

Bright adds that after the alleged victim in the Milledgeville case and her attorney stated that she did not want to pursue the case, Bright wanted to hear from the woman directly, and he and members of the Milledgeville Police Department and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation -- two agencies that investigated Roethlisberger in the case -- drove to the woman's home to meet.

"Her mother and her lawyer and she made it crystal clear that they did not want to go forward with this," says Bright. "It would have been the wrong thing to do to prosecute Roethlisberger. There was that line that I used in the (2010) press conference, 'We do not prosecute morals, we prosecute crimes.'"

Bright says that he is not aware of Roethlisberger making any kind of payoff to the alleged victim in the Milledgeville case. NFL commissioner suspended Roethlisberger for six games for violating the league's personal conduct policy, but the punishment was later reduced to four games.

During the 2010 presser, Bright famously told Roethlisberger to "grow up" and to be a better role model, and today, the retired prosecutor says he hasn't heard any negative news about Roethlisberger in the years since.

"I heard that he got married, has three kids. If all that is true, that's a good thing. He seems to have grown up," says Bright. "There's not a doubt in my mind that had the case gone to trial, a jury would have found (Roethlisberger) not guilty. To be blunt, my decision was the only decision that could be reached by any responsible prosecutor."

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/da-georgia-roethlisberger-case-2010-not-case-article-1.2936346

[bostonsteeler]

The former Ocmulgee (Ga.) Judicial Circuit district attorney, who in 2010 declined to prosecute Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for an alleged rape, says he has no opinion about Roethlisberger's years-long decision to use a fictional hometown in his Steelers media guide profile.

"That's between (Roethlisberger) and his hometown," says Fred Bright, the now retired Georgia prosecutor. "I've never been to Findlay (Ohio). My job as a prosecutor is to determine whether or not I have a prosecutable case, which we did not."

While Roethlisberger prepares for his AFC wild card playoff game against the Dolphins Sunday in Steel City - nearly seven years removed from the rape allegation in Milledgeville, Ga. - the two-time Super Bowl champion appears to still hold a grudge against his real hometown of Findlay, Ohio, where he grew up and was a high school football star.

According to a recent Sports Illustrated profile, Roethlisberger switched his hometown from Findlay to the fictitious Cory Rawson in the team media guide starting in 2010, after the Milledgeville case concluded with Bright's decision not to prosecute the QB. The SI profile says that Roethlisberger is still bitter with Findlay residents for the way he was treated after the rape allegation in Georgia surfaced.


Roethlisberger was investigated but never charged in the Milledgeville case, nor was he charged in Nevada, where a woman named Andrea McNulty accused Roethlisberger of sexually assaulting her in 2008 in Lake Tahoe. McNulty filed a civil suit against Roethlisberger, and a settlement was reached for an undisclosed amount.

Bright says today that he has no lingering doubts about his decision in 2010.

"It wasn't a difficult decision," says Bright. "I'm a prosecutor seeking justice, and we did not have a case. It was not even a close call."

Bright adds that after the alleged victim in the Milledgeville case and her attorney stated that she did not want to pursue the case, Bright wanted to hear from the woman directly, and he and members of the Milledgeville Police Department and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation -- two agencies that investigated Roethlisberger in the case -- drove to the woman's home to meet.

"Her mother and her lawyer and she made it crystal clear that they did not want to go forward with this," says Bright. "It would have been the wrong thing to do to prosecute Roethlisberger. There was that line that I used in the (2010) press conference, 'We do not prosecute morals, we prosecute crimes.'"

Bright says that he is not aware of Roethlisberger making any kind of payoff to the alleged victim in the Milledgeville case. NFL commissioner suspended Roethlisberger for six games for violating the league's personal conduct policy, but the punishment was later reduced to four games.

During the 2010 presser, Bright famously told Roethlisberger to "grow up" and to be a better role model, and today, the retired prosecutor says he hasn't heard any negative news about Roethlisberger in the years since.

"I heard that he got married, has three kids. If all that is true, that's a good thing. He seems to have grown up," says Bright. "There's not a doubt in my mind that had the case gone to trial, a jury would have found (Roethlisberger) not guilty. To be blunt, my decision was the only decision that could be reached by any responsible prosecutor."

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/da-georgia-roethlisberger-case-2010-not-case-article-1.2936346

It was bad PR for Ben, but its highly highly doubtful, if not impossible, that Ben did anything worse than demonstrating severe lack of wisdom. He's since grown up.

[Mr.wizard]

Well, a lot of these rape cases never make it to trial because usually it's a "he said, she said" situation. Victims will often go the civil suit route because they cant afford to take it to trial. So I think it's possible he may have done a lot worse than demonstrate poor judgement, we will never know.

[feltdizz]

Well, a lot of these rape cases never make it to trial because usually it's a "he said, she said" situation. Victims will often go the civil suit route because they cant afford to take it to trial. So I think it's possible he may have done a lot worse than demonstrate poor judgement, we will never know.

Your bar hopping days end once you have a bulls eye on your back.

[RobinCole]

Wiz, I don't understand your statement that "victims will often go the civil suit route because they can't afford to take it to trial". But it's the civil suit route that requires the victim to hire an attorney. Going to the police doesn't cost anything because if the prosecutor decides that there is probable cause that a crime was committed, the case is handled by the state, not the victim.

The woman in Nevada never even went to the police.

[SidSmythe]

Wiz, I don't understand your statement that "victims will often go the civil suit route because they can't afford to take it to trial". But it's the civil suit route that requires the victim to hire an attorney. Going to the police doesn't cost anything because if the prosecutor decides that there is probable cause that a crime was committed, the case is handled by the state, not the victim.

The woman in Nevada never even went to the police.

He needs to watch more Court TV and Real TV

I tell my kids all the time....there is a things called "guilty by association"
You can be the cleanest guy in town but if you hang around the wrong crowd don't be surprised if you're likened to one of your buddies.

There are those who want Ben to be guilty....and those who want Ben to be Innocent. You will always have that.

I thought the city and people of Pittsburgh handled the situation well

[SanAntonioSteelerFan]

I'm lost. This is news now, 7 years later ... why?

[feltdizz]

I'm lost. This is news now, 7 years later ... why?

Someone is looking for clicks and probably felt like this story would get a few.

[feltdizz]

Wiz, I don't understand your statement that "victims will often go the civil suit route because they can't afford to take it to trial". But it's the civil suit route that requires the victim to hire an attorney. Going to the police doesn't cost anything because if the prosecutor decides that there is probable cause that a crime was committed, the case is handled by the state, not the victim.

The woman in Nevada never even went to the police.

i don't think Wiz is talking about finances. She can't afford to go to trial in a he said, she said case and risk losing.

Lets be honest, unless you have a ton of evidence, video, witnesses or dude has a history of raping the chances of convicting a 100 million dollar athlete are slim.

Hell, there are college athletes who were found guilty of rape and STILL avoided jail time because some judges are POS.

[NorthCoast]

i don't think Wiz is talking about finances. She can't afford to go to trial in a he said, she said case and risk losing.

Lets be honest, unless you have a ton of evidence, video, witnesses or dude has a history of raping the chances of convicting a 100 million dollar athlete are slim.

Hell, there are college athletes who were found guilty of rape and STILL avoided jail time because some judges are POS.

cowherd brought this up the other day on his show. Basically said it would be impossible to get a murder conviction against a college football player in the state of Alabama.

[Oviedo]

It's Willie Colon's fault

[Jigawatts]

There are never any articles about Tom Brady's love child with the girl from Coyote Ugly.

[RuthlessBurgher]

cowherd brought this up the other day on his show. Basically said it would be impossible to get a murder conviction against a college football player in the state of Alabama.

I saw two Utes go into the Sack-O-Suds...I guess the University of Utah was in town to play the Crimson Tide.

[SanAntonioSteelerFan]

There are never any articles about Tom Brady's love child with the girl from Coyote Ugly.

Presumably consensual. But the real reason is that it would once and for all answer the question of why Brady** is so fond of playing with deflated balls. Unfortunately all the tapes were destroyed by GodHell* "for the good of the NFL".

[RuthlessBurgher]

Yeah, the sex was consensual, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't her idea for him to knock her up and then leave her for a Brazilian supermodel while she was pregnant with his kid.