Dallas Cowboys special teams player C.J. Spillman is under investigation for a sexual assault that alledgedly occurred at the team hotel in Texas on September 20th.
"We have a sexual assault report we are investigating at this time, and it does involve C.J. Spillman," said Grapevine, Texas police spokesman Sgt. Robert Eberling as reported by the NY Daily News. "He is involved in the investigation. We are looking into the matter."
Grapevine, Texas police added that the assault "allegedly took place at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center, the Cowboys' official hotel since 2009."
Gloria Allred, the well-known civil rights attorney, represents the accuser and sent Goodell a letter stating as much on September 26, 2014. The letter also stated that the alleged perpetrator and a team official met with police later that day.
The crime is said to have been committed on September 20, a day after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's press conference denouncing domestic violence and trumpeting the league's increased focus on education and prevention. Spillman was allowed to play the very next day in a game against the St. Louis Rams.
"Thereafter, the accused was then allowed by his team to play the following day," Allred's letter said. "We have asked the NFL whether or not this alleged rape was reported to them, and if they approved this accused individual's playing in the game notwithstanding the allegations that had been made against him."
Allred has thus far declined to discuss the matter, but has been in contact with top NFL lawyer, Jeffrey Pash, who is seeking to interview the accuser.
"In considering whether our client will or will not be agreeable to meeting with your representative we would like to be assured that the NFL is acting in good faith and is conducting an investigation which encompasses not only the rape allegations but also why the player and the team involved did not report these matters immediately to the NFL, as required by your NFL Personal Conduct Policy," Allred wrote.
"In other words, my client and I are not an NFL team and the NFL does not get to make all the rules in this situation. This is not a game of football or a sporting competition. It is real life and it concerns a serious allegation of sexual violence against a young woman," Allred added.
The Cowboys just welcomed defensive tackle Josh Brent back to the team last week. Brent was convicted of intoxicated manslaughter resulting in the 2012 death of his best friend and Cowboys' practice squad player Jerry Brown. He had been sentenced to 180 days in jail and 10 years of probation.
"Again, part of what our jobs are as coaches is to create the right environment for our players to function both on and off the field," coach Jason Garrett said. "So we need to be clear about where we are, we need to be clear that we have a structure in place to help anybody who has any off the field issues. Me as a coach, position coaches, player programs, departments, we have a lot of resources here to help guys.
"So that was the first message, if you're dealing with anything off the field and we can help with, we're here for you. Having said that, there is standards that we have about all off the field behavior and certainly domestic violence applies to that. We're just very clear with how we're going to handle things."
The Cowboys have declined to comment thus far and Spillman has not yet been disciplined.
