Why the Buffalo Bills signing Olympic gold medal wrestler Gable Steveson is controversial
On Friday, the Buffalo Bills signed former Olympic gold medal wrestler Gable Steveson to play on the defensive line. Steveson was arrested in 2019 on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct after a female reporter disclosed that she had been raped by Steveson and a fellow Minnesota teammate. However, the charges were dropped later that same […]
On Friday, the Buffalo Bills signed former Olympic gold medal wrestler Gable Steveson to play on the defensive line.
Steveson was arrested in 2019 on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct after a female reporter disclosed that she had been raped by Steveson and a fellow Minnesota teammate.
However, the charges were dropped later that same year after it was determined that there was "inadequate evidence."
It was believed that alcohol was involved and due to Minnesota's current laws, it affected the way the case would be tried. Consider the below excerpt from a 2019 ESPN article on the matter:
Freeman also hinted that alcohol may have been involved, saying that under Minnesota's current laws on intoxication and a victim's ability to give consent, his office was restricted in how it could bring charges in the case.
In neighboring Wisconsin, Freeman said, prosecutors have broad discretion to charge suspects who know or should know that someone's alcohol consumption can impair his or her ability to give consent. He said he and others have pushed Minnesota lawmakers to pass similar legislation but have been unsuccessful so far.
This was further shown in 2021 when a felony rape conviction was overturned by the Minnesota Supreme Court because it was determined that the woman was intoxicated during her assault.
So this pointed the finger at a much larger problem: victim blaming. Saying that a victim can be assaulted simply because they chose to have something to drink is not okay. Basically it affects their ability to give consent.
But how is that possible? No means no. It's as simple as that.
In short, if the reason for an "inadequate evidence" was that the victim was intoxicated, Steveson and his former teammate should have been held responsible for their actions regardless if alcohol was involved.
Following his arrest Steveson was suspended from team activities but after the charges were dismissed, they were both immediately able to rejoin.
After this, he went on to win an Olympic gold medal in freestyle wrestling at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. And now he is joining the Bills as a defensive lineman.
