Kellen Winslow
Former NFL tight end Kellen Winslow II, 37, was sentenced on Wednesday for a pattern of predatory behavior against five women dating back to 2003.
Judge sentences fmr. NFL tight end, Kellen Winslow II, to 14 years in prison for rape and multiple other sexual offenses. Winslow II appeared via video conference from the jail today. @LawCrimeNetwork #KellenWinslow pic.twitter.com/kxjfZI7GLi
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) March 3, 2021
Winslow agreed to a 14-year sentence at a new plea hearing last month. Today marks the end of a roller-coaster case, in which Winslow was tried in May and June of 2019 for sex crimes against the women.
- Jane Doe 1: A hitchhiker who said he raped her.
- Jane Doe 2: A homeless woman who said Winslow invited her out for coffee, but instead raped her.
- Jane Doe 3: A woman who said the defendant, a stranger to her, exposed himself while she cut flowers in her yard.
- Jane Doe 4: A woman who said Winslow raped her after she blacked out at a party. She was 17. He was 19.
- Jane Doe 5: A woman who said the defendant approached her in two incidents at a gym, one of which involved him apparently masturbating in front of her.
The first trial ended in a mixed verdict. He was convicted of forcible rape against Doe 2, indecent exposure against Doe 3, and a lewd conduct charge against Doe 5, though he was acquitted of a second lewd conduct charge against Doe 5. His defense had tried to show that the alleged rapes were actually consensual sex, and the remainder of the claims did not happen as the women alleged. Jurors were hung on the remaining eight criminal counts, though they leaned toward guilt in each one.
Retrial was set. Everyone entered the courtroom on November 4, 2019, ostensibly expecting opening statements. They instead left having watched Winslow plead guilty at the proverbial last minute to sexual battery by restraint against Doe 1, and rape of an unconscious person against Doe 4. As the judge made clear at the time, the defendant faced a possible sentence of anywhere from 12 to 18 years.
Winslow cut out the guesswork from his sentence in another plea hearing on February 19. He switched out the charge of sexual battery by restraint against Doe 1 for a charge of assault with intent to commit rape involving the same victim. He agreed to a 14-year sentence.
