University of Utah defensive tackle Jamal Wallace was suspended from the football program and arrested Oct. 11 after a woman accused him of rape and distributing video of the assault on Snapchat — but prosecutors have charged him only with misdemeanor counts for sharing intimate images, releasing him on $5,000 bail.
The case lays bare the institutional double standard: universities that will drag a student before a Title IX tribunal for misgendering a classmate waited until police made an arrest to act on a rape allegation, and the legal system that should protect women handed down misdemeanor charges for what the victim described as a violent sexual assault recorded and broadcast without her consent.
According to a probable cause statement referenced by ESPN, the woman — not identified — said she and Wallace had been dating off and on. She alleged that on Oct. 9, during a discussion about their relationship, Wallace forced her to perform oral sex and then raped her. She also claimed Wallace hit her multiple times during the incident.
The woman told police Wallace recorded the assault and distributed the video across Snapchat. The Salt Lake City Police Department discovered the alleged videos and said Wallace had the phone in his possession when they were made, according to the Daily Caller. The victim said she felt "confused and disgusted" following the incident and underwent a sexual assault examination, per the Salt Lake Tribune.
When police interviewed Wallace, he denied raping the woman but admitted he had accessed her Snapchat account to see whom she had been speaking to, according to arrest documents cited by ESPN.
Despite the severity of the allegations, Wallace faces no sexual assault charges. He was arrested for distributing intimate images and hit with five misdemeanor counts. He has been released on $5,000 bail.
A University of Utah spokesperson confirmed Wallace was indefinitely suspended from the program. "We were made aware of the situation with Jamal Wallace on Oct. 11 and he was immediately placed on an indefinite suspension from the program," the statement reads. "We take these matters seriously. As this is a pending legal matter we have no further comment at this time."
The university's claim that it acted "immediately" only after Oct. 11 — the date of Wallace's arrest — raises the question of what the program knew, and when. The alleged assault occurred Oct. 9. Salt Lake City police launched their investigation and discovered the videos. Only then did the suspension come.
Meanwhile, Sports Illustrated spent the same news cycle covering the burglary of Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes's house in England — a story about a wealthy athlete's stolen property receiving more institutional media attention than a woman's allegation that she was raped and the evidence shared across social media by a college football player who walked on misdemeanor charges.
The open question: Will prosecutors upgrade charges as the investigation continues, or does the system consider distributing video of a sexual assault a misdemeanor matter while the allegation of the assault itself goes uncharged?
