Jameis Winston has reached a settlement with the Uber driver who filed a sexual battery lawsuit against him in Arizona two months ago.
According to Matt Baker of the Tampa Bay Times, a joint notice of settlement was filed in federal court on Monday, with the Uber driver’s attorney saying the woman “reached an agreement” with the Buccaneers quarterback. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
Winston was accused of groping the woman during an Uber ride more than two years ago. He was not criminally charged in the case, but the NFL suspended him for the first three games of the 2018 season after investigating the matter and finding the woman’s account to be consistent and credible. The lawsuit stated that the victim was seeking damages for “emotional distress as well as future therapy expenses.”
The incident occurred after Winston was at a nightclub with friends in Scottsdale, Ariz., in March 2016 and the people he was with called an Uber for the NFL star to be driven home. Winston, who was said to be intoxicated at the time, told the Uber driver he wanted a burrito, so she drove him to a Mexican fast food restaurant. When they were in the drive through line, the woman says Winston leaned over and touched her genitals without consent and that she immediately stopped him and questioned him. She contacted Uber to report the incident the following day.
Winston originally strongly denied the allegations, even having a friend say he was in the Uber car with the QB and that nothing happened. However, another friend later clarified that there were two separate Uber rides that night.
This is not the first time Winston has been accused of sexual misconduct, as he was also the subject of very public sexual assault allegations while in college at Florida State. He was not criminally charged in that case either, but he ended up settling a civil suit and countersuit with the woman out of court.
