TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The Florida State University official who counsels campus rape victims told lawyers suing the school that her office has handled 20 allegations of rape involving football players in the past nine years.
Assistant Dean of Students Melissa Ashton made the statement in a deposition given last summer in an ongoing civil lawsuit filed by former student Erica Kinsman against the university. Kinsman says the university failed to respond to her allegations that she was sexually assaulted by ex-Seminoles quarterback Jameis Winston.
Ashton said football players receive special treatment at the school and that most of the 20 victims declined to press student conduct charges.