Darren Sharper Could Face 15-20 Years Under New Plea Deal In Rape Case

On Tuesday, a federal judge formally accepted former NFL safety Darren Sharper’s plea deal in a drug and rape case, adding that Sharper could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.

Darren Sharper Could Face 15-20 Years Under New Plea Deal In Rape Case

U.S. District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo previously rejected a deal that could have entailed a nine-year sentence.

Attorneys say federal sentencing guidelines call for a sentence in the range of roughly 15 or 16 to 20 years, although that could be less depending on Sharper’s cooperation.

Sentencing was set for June 16.

The star safety has also pleaded guilty or no-contest in state courts to charges that he drugged and sexually assaulted women in Arizona, California and Louisiana.

Those charges involve nine victims, but Judge Milazzo said in court earlier this month that there may be as many as 16.

Shackled and clad in orange prison garb, Sharper said little besides answering basic, yes-or-no questions from Milazzo regarding his understanding of the implications of his plea deal.  Asked if was entering the plea because he was, indeed, guilty, he replied, “Yes, ma’am.”

A second-round pick out of William & Mary in the 1997 NFL Draft, Sharper was selected All-Pro six times and chosen for the Pro Bowl five times during a career that included stints with the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings. He played in two Super Bowls, one with the Packers as a rookie and one with New Orleans Saints when they won in 2010.

He retired from his 14-year career in 2011. He was working as an NFL network analyst when women began telling police in several cities similar stories of blacking out after drinking with him and waking up groggy to find they had been sexually assaulted.