Millions Do Not Mean Innocence

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger accused
 of sexual assault in Georgia
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By Associated Press
Saturday, March 6, 2010 - Updated 4h ago
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MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. — Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s night of bar-hopping in a central Georgia college town ended with a new allegation against him after a 20-year-old college student told police he sexually assaulted her in a nightclub.


The two-time Super Bowl winner already faces a lawsuit from a woman who claims he raped her in 2008 at a Lake Tahoe hotel and casino, an allegation he strongly denies. Roethlisberger has not been charged in either case.

The latest accusation came early Friday in downtown Milledgeville, about 85 miles southeast of Atlanta and about 30 miles south of the lake home the player owns.


Roethlisberger, who turned 28 on Tuesday, and two or three friends went to Buffington’s bar earlier Thursday night to watch the University of Pittsburgh men’s college basketball game, said Paul Kurcikevicus, a 24-year-old college student.

He said the group was friendly, at first joking that Roethlisberger was not the NFL player. Kurcikevicus said Roethlisberger bought shots for him and some other people in the bar: "O-Bombs," a mixture of energy drink and flavored rum.


The student said Roethlisberger got excited at the end of the game, when a Pitt player hit a 3-point shot at the buzzer to win 73-71 and avoid an upset by Providence.
The group later went to The Brick restaurant nearby, owner Frank Pendergrast said.


"He was very polite with everybody," Pendergrast said. "He was down here from about 11:30 until about 1:30 having a good time, talking to a lot of people. Looked like he was signing autographs and letting people take pictures. Other than that, it was really uneventful."


Roethlisberger was later seen at Capital City, a popular nightclub for students at Georgia College & State University in Milledgeville. The club was bustling Friday night, with a country band playing and a $20 cover charge.


One patron, 21-year-old college student Brandon Harris, said he saw Roethlisberger come in the night before with two or three big men, who were keeping other club goers away from the player. Harris said the group went into a curtained VIP area in the back of the club, and some women were let inside.


What happened next is under investigation.


Deputy Police Chief Richard Malone said Roethlisberger had been with three other people who were mingling with another group that included the alleged victim. Malone said the woman and her party contacted a nearby police officer following the alleged assault.

"He’s been identified as being at the scene and there are allegations naming him as the perpetrator," Malone said.

Several areas of the nightclub were considered a crime scene, Malone said, but he would not elaborate. The nature of the assault was not described, but Malone did say it was being termed a sexual assault, not a rape.


Roethlisberger and the alleged victim were interviewed and the woman was taken to a hospital, where she was treated and released, Malone said.


The woman was not identified by police and The Associated Press does not generally identify possible victims of sexual abuse.


Police said Roethlisberger and his attorney were cooperating with investigators. He was not in custody and has not been charged with a crime.

The player’s agent, Ryan Tollner, said in a statement they are skeptical of the motive of the alleged victim in Milledgeville because of the previous Lake Tahoe allegations.
"Last night, Ben and his friends met a group of women and everyone mingled together throughout the evening," the agent’s statement said. "We have spoken to law enforcement. Based on information currently available, an allegation was made against Ben, which appeared to be dismissed after a preliminary investigation last night. Obviously, given the prior accusation against Ben, we are skeptical of motive, but we will continue to cooperate with everyone involved."


Steelers spokesman Dave Lockett said the team was gathering information and had no more comment.


As Pittsburgh’s first-round draft pick out of Miami of Ohio in 2004, Roethlisberger led the Steelers to Super Bowl victories in 2006 and 2009. But he has had his share of problems off the field.


His previous accuser was working as a VIP hostess at Harrah’s Lake Tahoe in July 2008 when she alleges Roethlisberger lured her to his room under false pretenses and forced himself on her. He was in town playing in a celebrity golf tournament.


Roethlisberger maintains the woman acted voluntarily at all times while in his room. His lawyers have said the fact that she never filed a formal criminal complaint with police is proof she made up the story to try to secure a big payout from the NFL star.


Her lawsuit seeks at least $440,000 from Roethlisberger and at least $50,000 from Harrah’s claiming they conspired to cover up the incident.


Roethlisberger broke his jaw and several other facial bones in 2006 when he got into a motorcycle crash while driving without a valid license.

This story is a testament to a level of stupidity and vulgar entitlement one childish and spoiled rich sports idol can reach. Before anyone reads this story above and takes the side of Roethlisberger in this situation know up front that when I followed the FIRST complaint leveled against him by one Andrea McNulty in Arizona I read every inch of a detailed court suit filed against the Steelers QB.
(please see: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/21/andrea-mcnulty-accuses-be_n_242022.html )

The actual law suit is compelling reading. It describes almost identically the same sort of friendly and courteous behavior on Roethlisberger's part just prior to snapping into this alleged sex assailant. The alleged victim in that case, Ms. McNulty was a highly qualified, university degreed in hospitality industry,  long time employee for the hotel chain where the attack supposedly took place. This was her career, and she received many promotions to become the head of events at the specific location where the alleged attack took place.  Hotel policy was that she had to ensure the total enjoyment of the hotel's VIP guests, of which the Steelers QB was one, while attending a celebrity golf tournament with the likes of Michael Jordan participating. And she paid the price for simply trying to do her job.

Again, the similarities of the actual incident are uncanny. TMZ reports that in the latest Georgia incident, after friendly banter and an enjoyable time, the accuser went to use the ladies room, and Roethlisberger barged in right after her, and that's when the alleged assault took place. In the Arizona incident, the Steelers QB had been a gentleman and friendly to staff all weekend long. Then he asked Ms. McNulty to enter his room to see why his TV wasn't operating correctly, and when the door shut behind her, the alleged assault took place.

Is this a pattern? Well, I think it is.  Sex assault and rape is a crime of power and rage, of having the upper hand over a victim to inflict your will on them. I mean, we're talking about a man 6 foot 6 inches tall, weighing 240+ pounds, a professional athlete. What chance did either woman have in fending him off if these assaults took place? None! Being nice, having some fun, puting them at ease and then when their prey is isolated and vulnerable, pouncing. This guy sounds exactly like a sex predator.

In the Arizona case it took the victim a year to go to authorities to file a complaint. Nothing came of it, and no charges were filed, leading to the law suit which seeks damages from both Roethlisberger and the hotel chain which employed McNulty for the constant pressure they put on her to NOT report the assault, at first, then to find grounds on which to fire her. The details of the suit, as I said, spell out a truly heinous
pattern of employee abuse suffered by McNulty at the hands of her employer after the alleged sex assault by the Steelers QB. Eventually Ms. McNulty was hospitalized due to the incident and received continuing counselling due to the entire situation, allowing
Roethlisberger 's legal team to use the age old "NUTS and SLUTS" defense of their
client. I'll be interested to see if that applies in the new case. It's obvious they are quickly travelling down the path of labelling the alleged Georgia victim a "GOLD DIGGER" as I write this.

Roethlisberger himself has long been considered not the brightest bulb around. He is a great athlete and has a talent for quarterbacking that cannot be denied.  He sustained a serious motorcycle accident that nearly killed him, an accident that took place where he failed to wear a helmet. As soon as he was able to speak again he said he would continue to ride without a helmet. This statement came even though the accident nearly killed him because of facial fractures and head injuries and after the Steelers demanded that if he rides he must wear a helmet! You can see this guy's powers of reasoning anywhere but on a football field are very suspect. Yet more in a growing pile of evidence that giving young men millions of dollars when they have accomplished only feats of greatness on the playing field might not be the best way to build character or usefull, independent adults.

Who knows what really happened in either incident. You, the reader , are left to read and research as you will. Being a sports fan in general and a football fanatic, at first blush I originally thought like most sports fans that the Arizona incident was some calculating hussy's way of fleecing the dummy from Pittsburg. After reading the suit filed on behalf of Ms. McNulty, seeing the details and machinations of the hotel chain, and after witnessing similar situations played out in my old business as an executive level employee and personnel director, I readily identified the plausability of what her suit alleged against both defending parties.

Yes, I believe what Ms. McNulty alleges. I now have to hear more from the victim in the Georgia case. But I know one thing for sure. Ben Roethlisberger has a serious problem. He's either horrifically stupid for putting himself in these situations or he is a sex predator. Either one needs to be dealt with. I have a feeling the NFL will get involved here. The league now has a "two strike" policy in which two public displays of crass stupidity and wrongdoing, like accusations of sexual assault, bring the player in the crosshairs for NFL discipline. The next few weeks will be interesting. If this guy has a problem they will find out. And they have shown recently they will take action. This can do nothing but help both women in the eye of this hurricane.