FSU Pays QB Winston Accuser $250K

Florida State University is shelling out $250,000 to a former student who says the school shrugged off her accusations that star QB Jameis Winston raped her, reports the AP. The woman's lawyers will get another $700,000, making this the biggest Title IX settlement in a case involving a school's alleged indifference to a reported sex assault, reports USA Today. Winston, who now plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, did not face criminal charges over the 2012 incident after the state attorney examined the case. He has said the sex was consensual, and the university itself cleared him of any wrongdoing.

"I will always be disappointed that I had to leave the school I dreamed of attending since I was little," said his accuser, Erica Kinsman, in a statement. "I am happy that FSU has committed to continue making changes in order to ensure a safer environment for all students." With the settlement, FSU admits no wrongdoing but says it felt the legal fight would have been too protracted and expensive. As part of the deal, it agreed to put into place a five-year program on awareness and prevention of campus sexual assault. A separate federal investigation continues by the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights. (More Jameis Winston stories.)