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March 10, 2010

Lawyers: Respect Roethlisberger accuser’s privacy

AP Associated Press

ATLANTA — Attorneys for the woman who accuses Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger of sexual assault said that she did the right thing by going to police and asked for privacy in a statement Tuesday.

Atlanta-based Attorneys Lee Parks and David Walbert said in the statement released to several media outlets that woman is assisting police. They said they were hired to advise the woman and her family while police investigate the allegations.

The 20-year-old told police that the two-time Super Bowl winner, who had been out barhopping with friends, assaulted her early Friday at a nightclub in Milledgeville, Ga. Roethlisberger has not been charged.

“Their daughter has done the right thing and reported this matter to the police,” reads the statement released by the attorneys’ Atlanta law firm, Parks, Chesin & Walbert. “She has been, and will be, available to the authorities to assist them in the criminal investigation. While the matter is under investigation, we ask you to respect her privacy, keep her name out of the press and allow the family space and time to heal.”

Ed Garland, an attorney for Roethlisberger, has said the quarterback is innocent of any crime.

“The facts show that there was no criminal activity. No sexual assault occurred,” attorney Garland said in a statement Monday.

Milledgeville police have said they expect to interview Roethlisberger in the next several days and are planning to take a DNA sample from him.

Roethlisberger, who owns a home about 30 miles north of Milledgeville on Lake Oconee, is also being sued by a woman who claims he raped her in 2008 at a hotel-casino in Lake Tahoe hotel and casino, an allegation he strongly denies.

Parks and Walbert didn’t return calls and e-mails from The Associated Press.

 

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