Jameis Winston Files Counterclaim Against Erica Kinsman

Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie quarterback Jameis Winston has filed a counterclaim against the woman who accused him of sexual assault in Dec. 2012, Erica Kinsman. Winston’s counterclaim seeks an estimated $75,000 in damages.

It turns out Jameis Winston isn’t going to take Erica Kinsman’s lawsuit lightly. 

According to a /4/9 update from Matt Baker of The Tampa Bay Times, Winston has filed a counterclaim against Kinsman, who accused him of sexual assault in Dec. 2012. 

Winston’s attorneys John F. Myers and David Cornwell, Sr. filed the counterclaim in an Orlando federal court on Sunday, per ESPN.  

Jameis Winston has filed a counterclaim against the woman who accused him of sexual assault. MORE: http://t.co/gQFTsgCBVe— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) /4/9, 2015

The counterclaim states Kinsman’s accusations are “false, defamatory…and have maliciously and impermissibly interfered with Mr. Winston’s business and personal relationships,” per Baker.

Futhermore, the countersuit claims “damages in excess of $75,000” and maintains Kinsman was motivated by greed, per The Tampa Bay Times:

“Mr. Winston brings this action against Ms. Kinsman out of necessity, not malice or ill will. Nonetheless, Ms. Kinsman’s false statements have irreparably harmed in his professional and personal life.

“However, Ms. Kinsman has been successful in one major area. She has mounted a false and vicious media campaign to vilify Mr. Winston and the objective of getting him to pay her to go away. Ms. Kinsman is motivated by the most insidious objectives — greed.

“If nothing else, Ms. Kinsman has been consistent at being inconsistent. 

Jameis Winston sues woman who accused him of rape for $7M http://t.co/bLSEeDkuQd pic.twitter.com/ALOBSkSbdy— David Nelson (@DavidNelsonNews) /4/10, 2015

“To aid her false allegation of rape (the ‘False Allegation’), Ms. Kinsman tampered with witnesses, interfered with criminal investigations and manufactured new false assertions each time a prior lie was rebutted by the truth.”

The 63-page countersuit claims Winston’s innocence 40 times. It states Kinsman gave her consent to have a sexual relationship with Winston. At one point, the countersuit says she even requested they move from the bedroom with a broken door to a more private setting, per Baker. 

The countersuit also says Kinsman was inconsistent in her prior testimonies which include her getting hit on the head and Winston drugging her. No evidence supported both claims, per The Tampa Bay Times. 

Baker stresses the counterclaim comes three weeks after Kinsman filed a lawsuit accusing Winston of sexual battery. The former is seeking around $15,000 in damages. 

Winston insists the sex was consensual. He has never been arrested and the State Attorney’s Office did not press charges against him due to a lack of evidence ,per The Tampa Bay Times. 

Top NFL draft pick Jameis Winston sues rape accuser: http://t.co/5Nkn0F6HRb— S.V.J Muralidharan (@SVJMuralidharan) /4/10, 2015

The ESPN update says the consensual encounter is backed up by medical evidence and two of Winston’s former Florida State Seminoles teammates who served as witnesses. 

Winston’s camp claims Kinsman’s lawsuit aimed to destroy his public image which led to the loss of some big-time endorsement deals, per Baker. 

One of Winston’s lawyers, John Clune, told Baker on Sunday his client’s past off-field issues will be taken into account as a result:

“Since he is now alleging injury to his great reputation, all of his past conduct will become front and center in the case and the burden of proof will be on him. I’m not sure how well that is going to work out for him, but he certainly has the right to try.”

Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Lovie Smith told ESPN on Sunday that Winston’s off-field issues should not detract him from his duties as their new franchise quarterback:

“We do not think it will be a problem for Jameis to remain focused on playing football here. Not at all. We all have things that we’re dealing with off the football field. But guys know when it’s time for football here, and it’s about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and doing our work here.”

The Buccaneers selected Winston with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 NFL draft on April 30. He signed a four-year, $25.35 million contract with a $16.69 million signing bonus on /4/1, per ESPN. 

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