Tim Jansen, an attorney for Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston, is "not surprised" his client's DNA was found in the underwear of the woman accusing Winston of rape. Jansen asserted Winston and the woman had consensual sex, which an attorney for the woman staunchly denied.
ESPN reported on Wednesday that Winston's DNA matched the sample collected from the alleged victim's underwear. Jansen acknowledged Winston voluntarily submitted a DNA sample on Nov. 14 to the Tallahassee Police Department, though he questioned why the information was apparently leaked by law enforcement.
"We are not surprised with the results of the DNA," Jansen told reporters, via ESPN. "We voluntarily submitted to a DNA [test]; the only thing we are surprised by is it was leaked out by law enforcement. The question the people should ask is why is it being leaked? For what purpose?"
Jansen said the positive DNA match doesn't disprove his client's claim that the sex was "absolutely" consensual.
"I don't think it's a secret what the defense is when I tell you that we are not surprised his DNA was found," Jansen said. "We anticipated it would be found. We never, ever said he wasn't there."
Jansen also said he submitted affidavits to the state attorney's office from two witnesses who corroborate Winston's account of the events from Dec. 7, 2012. Both witnesses are FSU football players, according to ESPN.
Patricia Carroll, the attorney for the alleged victim, adamantly denied the sex between Winston and her client was consensual.
"It's absolutely untrue," said Carroll. "This is a victim of rape, which occurred on Dec. 7. She identified this guy sometime in January. This whole situation - think about it, think about it - if she wanted to ruin this guy, she would have done it a long time ago."
The police investigation into the incident has drawn scrutiny; TMZ went as far as saying the Tallahassee Police Department tried to cover up the alleged assault and sweep it under the rug.
The family released a statement on Wednesday critical of the investigation. Among other things, the letter describes a conversation between the family attorney and a detective from the Tallahassee Police Department in which the detective seemingly tries to dissuade the victim from pursuing the case.
Read the full statement HERE.
