Jameis Winston disciplinary hearing to begin Tuesday at Florida State

Published Dec. 1, 2014 7:15 p.m. ET

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Jameis Winston's Florida State Seminoles are getting set to play for their conference championship as the Heisman Trophy winner is facing a different challenge -- a disciplinary hearing that has the potential to derail his college career.

That hearing, scheduled to begin at noon Tuesday at an undisclosed location on campus, will be conducted by a retired Florida Supreme Court Justice who has the task of determining whether Winston violated university rules governing student conduct in a 2012 incident in which a woman alleged that she was raped by the quarterback.

Winston was not charged with a crime in the incident, which occurred at his off-campus apartment early the morning of Dec. 7, 2012, and which his attorneys have asserted was a consensual sexual encounter.

But he has been notified that he faces four possible violations of Florida State's student conduct code -- two separate allegations of sexual misconduct and two separate allegations of endangerment.

Retired Florida Supreme Court Justice Major Harding, who agreed to conduct the hearing at the request of Florida State administrators, is expected to take testimony from witnesses and consider voluminous records in the case before determining whether Winston violated student conduct rules.

The hearing may continue for several days -- and Harding is expected to issue a ruling later in December.

The hearing comes as Florida State is itself the subject of a federal investigation into its handling of the allegation against Winston, who has the 12-0 Seminoles headed to Saturday's Atlantic Coast Conference championship game. That investigation is being conducted under the gender equity law known as Title IX, which requires colleges and universities that receive federal money to promptly investigate allegations of sexual assault.

Harding was brought in as an independent, outside arbiter in the highly charged case.

If Harding concludes that Winston violated school rules against sexual misconduct or endangerment, the repercussions could be as severe as suspension or expulsion from Florida State.

Florida State is ranked No. 3 in the race for one of four spots in the college football playoff.

The rape allegation was investigated and then shelved by Tallahassee police in early 2013 amid assertions that the woman was uncooperative -- something her attorneys have disputed. It then flared into the open in November 2013 as Winston was marching the Seminoles to an undefeated season and the team's first national championship since 1999. Along the way, he won the Heisman.

State Attorney Willie Meggs, who revived the investigation, ultimately concluded there was not enough evidence to file criminal charges.

Title IX, however, requires that schools investigate alleged sexual assaults irrespective of whether criminal charges are filed -- and that led school administrators to attempt to interview Winston last January and then to interview the woman in August. After that investigation, school administrators notified Winston in October that he faces four potential violations of the Florida State student code of conduct:

-- Sexual misconduct -- defined as "any sexual act that occurs without the consent of the victim, or that occurs when the victim is unable to give consent."

-- Sexual misconduct -- defined as "conduct of a sexual nature that creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive environment for another person. This includes unwanted, unwelcome, inappropriate, or irrelevant sexual or gender-based behaviors, actions or comments."

-- Endangerment -- defined as "physical violence towards another person or group."

-- Endangerment -- defined as "action(s) that endanger the health, safety, or well-being of another person or group."

Harding is expected to seek testimony from both the woman and from Winston, each of whom is allowed to have one adviser present during the hearing. While each will be allowed to consult the adviser, they will have to answer any questions they choose to. Either has the right not to answer questions at the hearing.

Harding can also consider the voluminous documents associated with the incident -- hundreds of pages of reports generated by Tallahassee police and the state attorney in their investigations as well as other records.

Harding will be tasked with deciding whether Winston violated any of the school conduct rules using a standard that is much lower than that used in criminal courts -- "preponderance of evidence." That burden is generally described as enough evidence to tip the balance one way or another -- to determine that it is more likely or less likely, in this instance, that sexual misconduct or endangerment occurred.

In addition to Winston and the woman, others to testify could include two other Florida State players -- defensive end Chris Casher and defensive back Ronald Darby.

The two players signed sworn affidavits in which they said they watched a portion of the sexual encounter and that it appeared to be consensual. Casher additionally told investigators that he filmed a portion of the encounter on his cell phone but later erased the images.

Both were charged with violations of Florida State's student conduct code -- but only Casher was found to have broken rules. He was placed on disciplinary probation for one year.

Once Harding rules, both Winston and the woman have the right to appeal his decision.

For Winston, the hearing poses problems on multiple fronts. In addition to the fact that Harding will be bound by a lower standard of proof than is used in criminal courts, testimony and evidence from the hearing could be used to revive the criminal case.

The statute of limitations for sexual assault is five years -- meaning that criminal charges could still be filed. And Meggs has said that he would consider reopening the case if significant new information came to light.