Ex-Baylor DE Shawn Oakman Found Not Guilty Of Rape

Ex-Baylor defensive end Shawn Oakman was found not guilty of raping another student.

After two hours of deliberation, the Waco, Texas, jury acquitted the 26-year-old of the 2016 sexual assault allegations.

The accuser claimed to be intoxicated when Oakman assaulted her. She said she told the former star that she wanted to leave his duplex but he refused to let her. But Oakman’s attorneys claimed that the two chose to be together that night and had a previous relationship.

“The jury rejected the state’s narrative and concluded that the state had failed to prove this was a non-consensual encounter,” Oakman’s attorney, Alan Bennett, said. “Shawn and his family are so appreciative of the jury’s careful attention to and thoughtful consideration of the evidence. In my 29 years of courtroom experience, I have never experienced a more emotional celebration when a verdict was read.”

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This isn’t Oakman’s first run-in with the law. He originally transferred to Baylor from Penn State following arrests on charges of disorderly conduct, harassment and retail theft after he tried to run off with a convenience store chicken sandwich and grabbed a female store clerk by the wrist. He was also accused of being physically abusive to a woman in January of 2013. Neither incident was presented in the case but may have been if he was convicted.

These current allegations served to derail the 26-year-old’s football career. He was once projected to be a mid-round pick in the 2016 NFL draft but his arrest led to him going undrafted. They came at a time when Baylor was being shamed for their response to sexual assault allegations against students and athletes.

In December 2014, Oakman returned to Baylor for his senior years despite being slotted as a high-round pick in the 2015 draft. In 2018, he’d have to settle for a Champions Indoor Football team in North Dakota.

Article by Bill Piersa