Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger Accused of Assaulting College Student
March 8, 2010— -- Pittsburgh Steelers Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has hired high-profile attorneys today in response to complaints made by a 20-year-old Georgia College & State University student that Roethlisberger allegedly sexually assaulted her early Friday morning at a nightclub in Milledgeville, Ga.
Special Agent Tom Davis of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said authorities would be reviewing videos from Milledgeville nightclubs Roethlisberger, 28, visited late Thursday and early Friday. Agent Davis said the woman has an attorney but he would not provide the name.
Roethlisberger has not been charged with any crimes and has now hired Atlanta criminal defense attorneys Edward T. M. Garland and Donald F. Samuel to represent him.
Garland released a statement today which read: "The facts show that there was no criminal activity. No sexual assault occurred. We are cooperating with the investigation. Ben is completely innocent of any crime. The truth of the events should cause this investigation to end without a criminal charge. I will not go into details at this time, but will in the future."
Milledgeville Police Chief Woodrow Blue said at a press conference today that his police department has been in contact with Garland and that Roethlisberger is cooperating with police. He said Roethlisberger will be interviewed in the coming days.
Pittsburgh Steelers' President Art Rooney II issued this statement:
"All of us in the Steelers family are concerned about the recent incident involving Ben Roethlisberger in Georgia. We cannot comment on any of the specifics until law enforcement's investigation is concluded. Certainly, we will continue to closely monitor the situation."
Roethlisberger, nicknamed "Big Ben" by football fans, led his team to Super Bowl victories in 2006 and 2009.
ABC News' Jen Wlach contributed to this report.
