Charges Filed Against 3 MSU Football Players In Sexual Assault Case
LANSING (WWJ) -- After months of investigations, the Ingham County prosecutor has charged three Michigan State University football players in connection with sexual assault that took place on campus earlier this year.
Prosecutor Carol A. Siemon said in a press release that the three men allegedly assaulted a woman in an East Lansing apartment on January 16.
"At this point, the criminal charges are only an accusation, and the accused should be considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law," Siemon said in the release.
The names of the three accused players have not been released. They have been suspended and separated from the team.
The results of an independent investigation by the university were also released by the MSU Board of Trustees on Monday. Michigan State hired independent Detroit firm Jones Day, which determined the university -- and football coach Mark Dantonio -- handled the situation properly.
"Dantonio immediately conveyed the information regarding an alleged assault to MSU PD so it could open an investigation, and he encouraged the player who reported the assault to cooperate with authorities," the report reads.
"Coach Dantonio and his team -- particularly Coach Dantonio -- handled this in the utmost manner with integrity and with swiftness and consistent with the policies that takes all of those issues off the board with respect to Coach Dantonio and the team that is currently there," University President Lou Anna Simon.
However, it was found by Jones Day that one of Dantonio's staff members -- who was suspended during the investigation --failed to report any information to the MSU Police Department after speaking with the three players.
Siemon said that staff member will not face charges. At the time of the investigation, staff member Curtis Blackwell was suspended and his contract was not renewed.
[Read the full Jones Day report here: Jones-Day-Report-June-5-2017]
A Title IX investigation completed on May 22 determined that the three players would not be removed from the team.
