NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A jury has convicted two ex-Vanderbilt football players of raping a former student inside a dorm room.
The jury deliberated for about three hours before finding Brandon Vandenburg and Cory Batey guilty. They face decades in prison.
Prosecutors say Vandenburg brought an unconscious 21-year-old woman he had been seeing back to his dorm room after a night of drinking in 2013 and the assault occurred as he took pictures.
Defense attorneys say Vandenburg took “deplorable” photos but did not take part in the assault. Batey testified that he was so drunk he didn’t remember what happened until he later saw cellphone photos and video.
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Police officers who testified said they didn’t find evidence of body fluids on the dorm room floor that would indicate a sexual assault, but they did not go to the dorm room until four days later.
Throughout the trial, jurors have seen graphic images and videos recovered from cellphones and a laptop. Prosecutors said that players took pictures of the assault and that one sent videos to his friends as it was happening.
Jaborian “Tip” McKenzie, who is also charged, testified that Vandenburg was “amped” and coaching the players. McKenzie testified that he did not touch the woman himself but took pictures.
A trial date for McKenzie and Brandon Banks, the fourth player accused, has not been set.
