No rape charge against UW basketball player

Prosecutors said Friday they will not file felony charges against a University of Washington men's basketball player who was the subject of a rape investigation.

A 16-year-old girl claimed the player forced her to perform a sex act at a Seattle apartment on Jan. 8. But King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg's office said in a news release that witnesses - described as a friend of the girl and two other men who were in the apartment - portrayed the encounter as consensual.

There was no evidence to substantiate a charge of third-degree rape, the statement said. Seattle police had recommended that no rape charges be filed, and prosecutors agreed after conducting their own review.

The witnesses reported that the player bought alcohol for himself and the girl before going to the apartment, and Satterberg said the case is being referred to the city attorney's office to determine whether the player should be charged with furnishing alcohol to a minor.

The witnesses described how the girl initially contacted the basketball player through Facebook. He later met the girl and her friend downtown, and stopped on the way back to his apartment to buy the alcohol, the statement said. The witnesses reported that the girl had been drinking before the sexual contact occurred.

The age of consent in Washington is 16, and a charge of third-degree rape requires proof that a victim "clearly expresses a lack of consent by words or conduct," Satterberg's office said.

A spokesman for the 20th-ranked Huskies said the school had no comment because the investigation is ongoing.