Watson a Brown afterall

[George Cantstandya]

As I always state I believe in innocent until proven guilty.  Every defendant deserves the right to defend themself to the best of their ability.  As for the criminal charges that were dismissed, I read that only 1 of the complainants actually testified to the grand jury.  I don't care one bit for Mike Florio but here is his take as a lawyer with interesting points I put in bold:

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2022/03/11/deshaun-watson-grand-jury-wanted-to-hear-from-only-one-alleged-victim/

Quote:Per the Times, “several” of the women were present and ready to testify. A source with knowledge of the situation tells PFT that five of the women were there.

According to PFT’s source, the prosecutor presented evidence regarding all nine claims to the grand jury. The grand jury ultimately wanted to hear directly from one of them.

Two of the cases presented a higher potential of an indictment. None of the nine resulted in the grand jury charging Watson.

Watson’s camp had been quietly optimistic that the allegations against, even if accepted as true, did not amount to crimes. The grand jury apparently agreed.

As we’ve previously explained, indictments often hinge on the zeal applied by the prosecutor. If the prosecutor wants to indict a suspect, it’s not hard to do — since the defendant has no representation in the process. If the prosecutor doesn’t want to indict a suspect, it’s also not hard to do. The prosecutor controls what is and isn’t presented, and a skilled prosecutor can nudge a grand jury in a desired direction.

So why wouldn’t the prosecutor in this case not want an indictment of Watson? Possibly, she truly believed no crimes had been committed. It’s also possible that she believed she would not be able to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial, even if she believed that Watson had crossed the line.

There’s a fundamental difference between factual guilt and legal guilt. Plenty of people are factually guilty, but the court system can’t prove that they are legally guilty. As to Watson, the criminal process has ended. On the civil side, 22 cases remain. In one or more of those cases, a jury eventually could conclude that he violated the legal rights of the women who are suing him, under the much lower legal standard of preponderance of the evidence.

Is he guilty of something?  Given the 22 civil complaints and the nine people that made criminal complaints, yeah probably in my opinion.  But the legal system worked within the law.  Did status and money play a part?  I don't know.   I'd like to think it didn't but these days who knows.   

But for now Watson is just a quarterback for the Browns, not charged with any crimes, but still facing civil charges.   Let's get over it. Burrow and company are going to make Watson wish he never signed with an AFCN team anyway. :)