Derrick Rose Investigation By LAPD Complicates The Rape Case

The investigation of Derrick Rose by the Los Angeles Police Department adds a twist to the NBA star’s rape case.

The New York Knicks player had a different Media Day on Monday. Instead of getting an opportunity to talk about the training and the season ahead, he was inundated by rape case questions from reporters. Rose, 27, who joined Knicks from Chicago Bulls in a $21.3 million transfer deal, is facing a civil case involving an alleged sexual assault, with his former girlfriend being the plaintiff.

Though the civil rape case has been in the public domain for long, the Derrick Rose investigation by the LAPD wasn’t known until this week. The NBA star is only beginning his first season with Knicks.

Derrick Rose investigation: lawsuit seeks $21.5 million

Rose and two of his friends are being accused of raping a former girlfriend of Rose, whose real name has been kept confidential and has only been identified as Jane Doe in court documents. The raping of Doe is alleged to have taken place while she was incapacitated in the summer of 2013 after a night of drinking.

The alleged rape incident triggered the Derrick Rose investigation, but the star maintains that he is innocent of the accusations. His lawyers have actually termed the civil lawsuit an attempt by the plaintiff to extort money from Rose.

In the Derrick Rose rape case, the plaintiff is seeking $21.5 million in settlement. However, Rose doesn’t look prepared to part with such a large sum of money in a case that he insists is based on false acquisitions against him. Rose is digging in for a legal contest as he lets his lawyers examine the case.

Lawyers for Rose have not only describe Doe’s rape claims a money grab, but also say that the sexual encounter between their client and the plaintiff was consensual. That should rule out the issue of rape.

Case trial begins in October

Derrick Rose’s rape case is set to proceed to trial on October 4. At the same time, the LAPD said Monday that its criminal investigation of the NBA star is underway. Derrick Rose’s LAPD investigation had not been previously revealed.

LAPD detective Nadine Hernandez confirmed that Derrick Rose’s investigation was in progress, but Hernandez declined to shed more light about the probe. Even LAPD information officer Norma Eismann was guarded with the investigation details, only saying that the investigation was “open” and never saying how long they have been investigating Rose.

Though Rose had known of the civil case over his alleged rape of a former girlfriend, he admitted that he wasn’t aware that the police were conducting criminal investigations against him. Rose added that LADP has not contacted him over the investigations, but told reports that he wasn’t worried about the probe.

“I feel like I didn’t do anything wrong […] I will be proven innocent,” he said during the NBA media day, the New York Times reported.

However, the trial of the civil case is likely to compete alongside Rose’s first season with Knicks. The day the case trial is set to begin in Los Angeles is the same day that Knicks players are scheduled to begin their preseason opener, which will be in Houston.

Before this latest Derrick Rose investigation news emerged, Knicks’ President Phil Jackson, had said that the organization wanted the legal proceedings to continue. Rose is one of the valuable players on the Knicks team.

Loss of anonymity

The woman accusing Rose of raping her always wanted to keep her identity secret. However, a Los Angeles judge recently ruled that the plaintiff cannot remain anonymous in the coming civil trial, USA Today reports. Rose’s lawyers back the ruling, but the plaintiff’s lawyers have protested stripping their client of anonymity.

[Featured Image by Mary Altaffer /AP Images]