MSU DE Auston Robertson Charged with Criminal Sexual Misconduct

Submitted by EastCoast Esq. on

It has now been revealed that former 4-star DE Auston Robertson was suspended on April 9th due to a charge of third-degree sexual misconduct (h/t Garrett Fishaw).

 

Michigan State's Auston Robertson has been charged with third-degree criminal sexual conduct stemming from an April 9 incident.

— Dan Murphy (@DanMurphyESPN) April 21, 2017

http://www.mlive.com/spartans/index.ssf/2017/04/msu_football_player_auston_rob.html

 

You may remember Robertson as the highly ranked Spartan recruit who "re-opened" his recruitment temporarily after a previous charge of battery delayed his signing.

http://www.mlive.com/spartans/index.ssf/2016/02/4-star_indiana_de_auston_rober.html

Of note, Auston Robertson was the #2 ranked player in MSU's 2016 class.

[ED:BiSB - I tweaked the headline and text slighty. We're going to tread very lightly on this topic]

boliver46

April 21st, 2017 at 10:53 AM ^

was fast...and yet we still don't have charges in the other case?  Or officially official released names?

Ok.

Image result for nothing to see here animated gif

In reply to by boliver46

FauxMo

April 21st, 2017 at 11:39 AM ^

First thing I thought. Apparently the sheriff has some issues up there with bad/lost records, and that may explain some of the slowness/carefulness on the other case. Given that, the fact that they charged so quickly in this case means that either the other case is way more complex (and possibly unproveable), and/or this case is just a slam-dunk, no questions needed, open and shut conviction... 

FauxMo

April 21st, 2017 at 1:32 PM ^

Well, while you're probably right - in that they are almost always "he said, she said" to some extent - you can have a case that is, relatively speaking, far, far easier to prosecute and prove. A case where the victim says, "he struck me in the face, pinned me down by my arms, forced my legs open, and then sexually assaulted me as I screamed for help," who can then corroborate this version of events with bruising to the face, arms, and legs, and with a roommate who entered the room after hearing screaming is, all else being equal, probably pretty close to a "slam-dunk case." The accused can respond by saying consenual "rough play" led to the bruising, and then somehow try to undermine the eyewitness, but let's face it, that would be very, very tough without some kind of strong evidence against the victim's credibility. Since this appears to be a "force/coercion" kind of sexual assault case, my guess is that there is photographic and medical evidence of physical injuries to the victim, and maybe even a witness. 

The other 3-player case is probably something far murkier, with no eyewitnesses and an intoxicated victim involved in group sex who wasn't injured, but (at least from her perspective) was incapable of giving consent because of impairment, and maybe even claims to having stated verbal "no's" during the encounter. This latter case would leave prosecutors with a much, much tougher job. 

lhglrkwg

April 21st, 2017 at 1:06 PM ^

I actually didn't realize this guy had ended up signing with MSU after that initial assault. I thought this was more news about this guy's initial criminal charges

The fact that this happened is a horrible look for Dantonio. No matter what he says, his perception will be that he let a criminal on his team to boost his chances of winning. I don't think Robertson would get a second chance if he was some 2* guy

DavidP814

April 21st, 2017 at 12:49 PM ^

I think YoOoBoMoLloRoHo is right (this has to be the first time in history that sentence has ever been typed).  Given the situation with Dr. Nassar in EL, the decision to keep or boot a player charged with a sex crime on the football team might be out of Mork's control at this point.  The President of the school might take this decision out of Dantonio's hands.