Jameis Winston's Attorney Reportedly Claims Extortion in Sexual Assault Case

Updates from Friday, Oct. 10

In response to a letter sent by Florida State defending their investigation into Jameis Winston's alleged sexual assault, a lawyer for the victim issued a statement, according to Illiana Limon Romero of the Orlando Sentinel:

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“Florida State knows that there is a big story about to break from the NY Times and their PR team is trying to do a little preventative damage control," Clune wrote in a statement to the Orlando Sentinel. "The obvious news in this statement is that senior athletic department officials met with Winston and his lawyer one month after the rape occurred then decided to hide it from the Title IX office.

“The statement’s timeline is full of errors but it shows that we can add both [the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act] and the victim-advocate privilege to the list of laws Florida State is willing to break to protect this football program. What else can the school do wrong in this mess? The whole country is moving toward improving the response to campus rape while Florida State still backpedals the other way.”

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Original Text

Controversial Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston continues to be the subject of a sexual assault investigation by the university, but the Heisman Trophy winner is now reportedly claiming the accusations against him were made for monetary gain.

According to TMZ.com, Winston's lawyer, David Cornwell, wrote in a letter to Florida State University that the accuser demanded $7 million from Winston in exchange for keeping her allegations out of the media.

Cornwell alleges that the accuser's lawyer, Patricia Carroll, laid down the ultimatum, per TMZ.com.

"If we settle, you will never hear from my client or me again—in the press or anywhere." Cornwell notes he rejected the offer, and she went to the media four days later.

Winston ultimately was not charged with a crime in relation to the alleged sexual assault. In December 2013, which was one year after the alleged incident took place, state attorney Willie Meggs announced that there wasn't sufficient evidence with which to convict Winston, via ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach:

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We've carefully examined all the evidence in this case and have concluded that no charges will be filed against anyone in this case. ... We have a duty as prosecutors to determine if each case has a reasonable likelihood of conviction. After reviewing the facts in this case, we do not feel that we can reach those burdens.

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John Clune, the attorney representing the woman, disputed those facts in a statement, according to Rachel Axon of USA Today: 

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Said Clune in a statement: "The facts that Mr. Cornwell chose not to disclose are that it was he himself who reached out to our client's former counsel Patricia Carroll to discuss paying off our client. Patricia Carroll didn't' even know who David Cornwell was until he called. Mr. Cornwell then himself flew down from Atlanta to negotiate with Ms. Carroll.

"Settlement discussions were immediately unproductive as Cornwell was crude and insulting going so far as to say 'your client likes to (expletive) football players,'" he added. "When told that the client's main concern was not money but that Winston be held accountable for his actions, Cornwell threatened to sue our client and her parents for civil racketeering in an effort to intimidate them into staying quiet."

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Despite the criminal case getting dropped, Winston has been the subject of an independent investigation by FSU. According to Matt Baker of the Tampa Bay Times, FSU's investigation relates to whether Winston has been in compliance with the school's code of conduct:

TMZ.com is reporting that Cornwell's letter to Florida State concluded with a word of warning regarding the nature of the investigation.

"Mr. Winston will cooperate with the investigation," Cornwell wrote. "He looks forward to clearing his name. But Mr. Winston will not walk into a honey trap. The investigation must be a legitimate investigation."

All of this comes with the Seminoles holding a 3-0 record and the No. 1 spot in the AP poll and the Amway Coaches poll. Winston was suspended for Florida State's victory over Clemson last week stemming from an incident when he yelled an obscene phrase in the student union.

Now that he has been reinstated, the focus shifts toward continuing to win games and making a push toward the College Football Playoff. Next up is a road game at NC State, followed by contests with Wake Forest, Syracuse, Notre Dame and Louisville.

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