Florida State University has agreed to pay Jameis Winston's accuser $250,000 in a nationally publicized sexual assault case, in exchange for her agreement to drop a Title IX lawsuit against the university.
The incident occurred in 2012, when Erica Kinsman reported the star FSU quarterback raped her. Winston was in the running for -- and would win -- the 2013 Heisman Trophy at the time. Many believed Winston's hero status played a major role in local law enforcement and the local prosecutor deciding not to pursue the case.
John Clune, one of the attorneys who represents accuser Erica Kinsman in the Title IX suit, said the financial breakdown of the settlement differs from the figures outlined by the university and that the $700,000 in fees FSU claims Kinsman's attorneys are getting "would be obnoxious." He did not disclose how much the fees were -- but he said the lump sum payment of $950,000 is the largest in history to a single plaintiff to settle Title IX discrimination claims of this kind for a school’s "indifference to a plaintiff’s sexual assault."
“Although we regret we will never be able to tell our full story in court, it is apparent that a trial many months from now would have left FSU fighting over the past rather than looking toward its very bright future,” FSU president John Thrasher said in a statement.
“We have decided to instead move forward even though we have full faith that the ultimate outcome of a trial would have been consistent with the previous law enforcement investigations and retired Supreme Court Justice Major Harding’s findings in the student conduct hearing,” Thrasher said.
Said Kinsman in a statement, “I’ll always be disappointed that I had to leave the school I dreamed of attending since I was little. I am happy that FSU has committed to continue making changes in order to ensure a safer environment for all students. My hope is that the federal investigation of my complaint by the Office of Civil Rights will produce even more positive change, not just at FSU, but across the country.”
In the interest of keeping the same thing that happened to her happen to another coed, Kinsman participated in a documentary and granted interviews, publicly identifying herself as Winston's accuser.
Kinsman had stated in her complaint that Head Football Coach Jimbo Fisher and Associate Athletics Director Monk Bonasorte knew of the sexual assault allegation in 2013. Attorneys representing the school maintained the claim was “insufficient to establish actual knowledge on the part of FSU,” asserting there was no way for Fisher and Bonasorte to know that the woman accusing Winston of rape was an FSU student and that neither Fisher nor Bonasorte can be considered an “appropriate person” under Title IX.
Thrasher said FSU’s main reason for reaching a settlement with Kinsman was to avoid “millions of dollars in additional litigation expense.”
“We have an obligation to our students, their parents and Florida taxpayers to deal with this case, as we do all litigation, in a financially responsible manner,” Thrasher said. “With all the economic demands we face, at some point it doesn’t make sense to continue even though we are convinced we would have prevailed.”
In separate cases, Kinsman is suing Winston, who just completed his rookie season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for sexual battery; Winston is countersuing Kinsman for defamation.
Reach Nancy Smith at nsmith@sunshinestatenews.com or at 228-282-2423. Twitter: @NancyLBSmith
