Female Uber driver suing NFL star Jameis Winston over alleged groping
A female Uber driver is suing Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston over claims of sexual assault stemming from an alleged incident in 2016.
A civil lawsuit filed in Arizona on Tuesday claims that Winston, 24, grabbed the woman's crotch while they waited at the drive-through of a Mexican restaurant in the Phoenix area in the early hours of the morning on March 13, 2016.
The woman is reportedly seeking $75,000 in damages over the alleged incident, which she reported to Uber without filing a civil or criminal complaint, according to AP.
Winston was suspended for three games by the NFL in June after an eight-month investigation, which deemed he had violated the league’s personal conduct policy by “touching the driver in an inappropriate and sexual manner without her consent.”
The quarterback will serve the final game of the ban when Tampa Bay plays the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday.
However, the woman, identified as ‘Kate' in federal papers, is said be unhappy at how Winston has conducted himself since the alleged incident.
"She is unimpressed by his continued lack of honesty or awareness into his behavior," said attorney John Clune, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
"Maybe a more direct financial penalty will get his attention. He needs to learn from this and have some genuine insight or pay the penalty.
"She knows that she might be just a speed bump for him in his football career, but she is not going to be a small one."
Winston had expressed regret at the accusations at the first day of training camp this year, saying: “I should never have put myself in that situation. All I can do is grow and learn from that… I’ve made a lot of positive changes since then.”
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The player has faced assault allegations in the past, being accused of raping a fellow student at Florida State University, although he was not charged.
The university settled a Title XI lawsuit of $1.7 million related to its handling of the allegations with the player’s accuser, Erica Kinsman, in 2016.
Winston was drafted as the number 1 overall pick by the Bucs in 2015, and has gone on to start 45 games.
The club has yet to comment on the lawsuit, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
