On Friday, ESPN released a bombshell report regarding former Florida quarterback Treon Harris and current wide receiver Antonio Callaway. According to ESPN reporters Mark Schlabach and Paula Lavigne, Harris and Callaway were accused in December of sexual assault by a female University of Florida student. The accuser has chosen to boycott the school's Title IX hearing due to the university appointing a Florida football booster to adjudicate the case.
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"This has been a difficult decision but as I previously indicated to you, the fact that UF has hired a football booster to adjudicate a sexual assault allegation against one of the team's own football players is a fundamentally skewed process in which [the complainant] refuses to participate," John Clune, the accuser's attorney, wrote in an Aug. 5 letter to UF deputy general counsel Amy Hass. "To be clear, [the complainant] remains very willing to participate in a fair and unbiased disciplinary process. Mr. Calloway's behavior has had a great impact on her life and continuing as a student at UF is of great importance to her and her future."
Florida suspended both Callaway and Harris in January for violating the school's code of conduct policy. They were barred from campus and took online courses during the suspension. Harris announced that he would be transferring from Florida in July, and Callaway still remains suspended but is actively practicing with the team, and was fully participating in the team's first day of camp on Thursday.
According to sources, the woman reported to Florida's student conduct and conflict resolution office that Callaway and Harris sexually assaulted her in early December. She didn't report the incident to police.
Furthermore, ESPN reports that Harris agreed to transfer away from Florida as part of a plea deal with the as part of a plea deal related to the Title IX case. Harris was suspended indefinitely in October of 2014 after he was accused of sexual assault, but returned to the team the following week after the alleged accuser dropped her complaint after four days.
We will continue to update this story with more information as it becomes available.
