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Former Duquesne University Basketball Player Facing Rape Charges

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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A former Duquesne University basketball player is accused of raping a woman in his dorm room after a party. He's in jail and off the team, but his lawyer says the rape never happened.

According to police, the alleged victim went to Nick Washington's dorm room after the party to charge her cell phone and said that's when he forced her to have sex. However, Washington's attorney said she wasn't forced to do anything and what happened was consensual sex.

"Quite frankly, we're disappointed that these charges were filed. We've been cooperating with the City of Pittsburgh Police Department, Duquesne University. We've spoken to the District Attorney's Office and there's two sides to this story," said Attorney Casey White, who is representing Washington.

Washington, 19, of Puerto Rico, is being accused of rape, sexual assault, unlawful restraint and other charges. According to police, the victim said Washington forced her to have sex and stopped her when she tried to leave his dorm room.

"Mr. Washington certainly did not rape anybody that night. It was a consensual encounter between two adults that had been hanging out all night," White said.

According to White, the alleged victim is a student at the University of Pittsburgh and met Washington through one of their mutual friends.

"They met earlier in the evening, they hung out, they spent some time -- interacted, for lack of a better term, previous to them going back to campus and afterwards nothing really seemed amiss so, quite frankly, we're confused and ready to hear what the accuser has to say," White said.

In the meantime, Duquesne University has suspended Washington from the basketball team.

"He had a promising basketball career, promising student, promising future. Bright kid, soft-spoken. And unfortunately, these allegations came. We've been fighting them and will continue to fight them," White said.

Washington's attorney told KDKA they plan to conduct their own independent investigation to fight the accusations that he maintains are false.

Duquesne University has issued a statement, which reads in part: "Duquesne University is dedicated to providing an educational environment that supports our mission and values. This includes a profound respect for the dignity of each person, and a commitment to preserve and protect the physical, emotional and spiritual well-being of all members of the campus community. Verbal, nonverbal or physical sexual misconduct of any kind will not be tolerated."

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