The lady who accused former San Diego State punter and NFL hopeful Matt Araiza of raping her at an off-campus occasion in 2021 has agreed to drop him from a civil lawsuit, attorneys on either side of the case confirmed Tuesday.
No cash will change arms, and Ariaza agreed to drop his defamation countersuit in opposition to her. The settlement leaves him open to pursue a possible go well with in opposition to the lady’s lawyer.
Her lawsuit in opposition to 4 different defendants accused of gang rape will go on and is ready for trial in February. These defendants, all former Aztec soccer gamers, have beforehand mentioned any encounter that they had with the lady was consensual.
The dismissal of Araiza from the lawsuit possible clears the best way for him to pursue one other shot on the NFL.
His attorneys issued an announcement Tuesday saying the event was “bittersweet.”
“Matt has been compelled to defend himself for the final sixteen months in opposition to false accusations and a marketing campaign to smash his profession within the NFL. He won’t ever get this time in his life again,” reads the assertion from attorneys Dick Semerdjian and Kristen Bush.
In addition they mentioned there was “in depth proof that was key to securing Matt’s voluntary dismissal from this lawsuit. Matt was and has at all times been harmless.”
The lady’s lawyer, Dan Gilleon, mentioned the defamation countersuit filed in opposition to her was “legally baseless.” Additionally, her first authorized invoice topped $20,000, and he or she “merely can’t afford to defend herself.”
“Plus she has been beat down by Araiza’s PR marketing campaign and is frankly over it,” he mentioned in a textual content.
Araiza was thought-about a future star when he was drafted by the Buffalo Payments in April 2022. However he was lower from the group when the lawsuit was filed 4 months later. Now 23, he’s been outdoors the league for greater than a 12 months.
Araiza has lengthy maintained he was not current when, in line with the lady, she was led right into a bed room throughout a celebration at a house close to campus and raped by different males in October 2021. He did admit the 2 had engaged in intercourse earlier within the night, outdoors the house.
The lady went to San Diego police the Monday after the occasion. The lady, who was 17 and in highschool on the time, instructed detectives she didn’t resist her attackers to keep away from being harmed.
After a months-long police investigation, prosecutors declined in December 2022 to file legal costs in opposition to any of the lads. The lady filed her civil lawsuit a number of months earlier.