A grand jury in Guernsey County, Ohio, indicted Sills, 25, after prosecutors claimed he sexually assaulted a woman in December 2019 while she was being restrained against her will.
According to Ohio prosecutors, a grand jury has indicted an offensive lineman Josh Sills for the Philadelphia Eagles on charges of rape and kidnapping.
Josh Sills, 25, was charged in Guernsey County, Ohio, after prosecutors claimed he raped a woman in December 2019 while she was being restrained forcibly.
According to a statement from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office, which is in charge of the prosecution, the incident was immediately reported, and the Guernsey County Sheriff’s Office carried out a “detailed investigation.”
In a statement released on Wednesday, the NFL said that Sills had been put on the “Commissioner Exempt List” and was no longer permitted to participate in team travel, practices, or games.
The indictment was filed on Tuesday after the criminal case was presented to a grand jury, which recommended charging the defendant with a first-degree felony. Instead of being detained, Sills was given a summons to court on February 16.
The Attorney General’s Office’s spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.
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Kidnaping and Rape Case Report of Joshua Sills
Michael Connick, Joshua Sills‘ attorney, asserted that the accusations were untrue and that his client would “aggressively” contest the charges. He opted not to add more commentary.
The woman, who was 21 years old at the time, had been friends with Sills for almost eight years and had attended high school with him, according to an incident report.
The woman claimed that Sills had driven her and her cousin late one night to their cousin’s house, but when the woman attempted to exit the vehicle, Sills grabbed her by her ponytail and pulled her back inside. According to the report, the cousin entered the house without realizing what had happened.
As per to the report, Sills attempted to forcibly kiss the woman despite her requests for him to stop and also made attempts to undress her.
According to the report, when another car pulled up behind them, Sills pushed the woman by her neck into the seat so that nobody could see them.
Who was the victim of Joshua Sills’ Kidnaping and Rape Case? How is the condition of Rape Victims?
The report stated that Sills then sexually assaulted the woman. The woman claimed that afterward, she pleaded with him to let her go, but Sills refused until she agreed to speak with him once more, according to the report.
The victim was taken to the hospital right away, where medical staff discovered bruising on her neck, throat, and knee in addition to other injuries that were consistent with a sexual assault. Deputies began their investigation after she called the police that evening to report the incident.
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Sills, a native of Sarahsville, Ohio, played college football at both West Virginia University and Oklahoma State University before being signed by the Eagles as an undrafted free agent last season. According to reports, the incident happened during Sills’ anticipated time as a WVU student.
The accusations come just a few days after the Eagles successfully defended their NFC title to advance to the Super Bowl on February 12 against the Kansas City Chiefs.The Eagles said in a statement late on Wednesday that they were “aware of the legal matter” involving Sills.
The statement read, “We have been in contact with the league office and are gathering more information.” “At this time, we have no additional comment.”
A Wednesday phone call to Sills’ agent seeking comment was not answered.
Sills has only participated in one game this year, and he was a healthy scratch for both playoff contests.
He was praised by general manager Howie Roseman for his size and strength. He was one of three undrafted free agents who made the Eagles’ 53-man roster. Only four special teams snaps have he played in this season, all of which came during the Eagles’ victory over the Arizona Cardinals.
Eight offensive linemen, excluding Sills, are on the Eagles’ active roster.
The NFL has been criticized for handling claims of sexual assault and domestic abuse made against players for a long time.
Deshaun Watson, the quarterback for the Cleveland Browns, recently resumed his career after serving an 11-game league suspension for sexual misconduct after being accused by more than two dozen women.
After two Texas grand juries decided not to indict him, the Browns signed Watson to a five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract. Watson, who has refuted the accusations, reached settlements with 23 of his accusers in civil lawsuits last summer, and two more lawsuits are still pending. Legal authorities and victims’ rights advocates have criticized the NFL’s punishment as being excessively lenient and failing to adequately reflect the gravity of the allegations.
Nelson Agholor, a wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles, was the subject of a sexual assault investigation in 2016, but prosecutors decided not to file charges due to a lack of evidence. He stayed with the group and is now a member of the New England Patriots.
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The results of a study titled “More Talent, More Leeway: Do Violence Against Women Arrests Really Hurt NFL Player Careers?”. That was published last year. — that teams may be more likely to part ways with or make an example of a lower-performing player compared to a star or even a mid-roster athlete, and that a player’s “worth” on the field influences team decisions about the direction of his career after allegations of abuse.
The Eagles should immediately suspend Sills, according to UltraViolet, a group that advocates for gender equality and women’s empowerment. UltraViolet also criticized the NFL’s leadership’s previous stances on the matter.
In a statement, the organization said that “sex abusers have no place playing in professional sports. And certainly not on the world’s biggest stage, the Super Bowl.”
