Rugby-player-turned-49er accused of rape in civil suit

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SAN JOSE — Jarryd Hayne, the Australian rugby-league player who spent 2015 with the 49ers, has been accused of rape in a civil lawsuit filed Tuesday in Santa Clara County.

The suit alleges Hayne engaged in nonconsensual sexual intercourse with a “Ms. V” in December 2015, according to attorney John Clune.

Hayne, who now lives in Sydney, Australia, denied the allegations in a statement released by his lawyer Ramy Qutami. The statement noted that Hayne had not been served with the suit.

“Mr. Hayne unequivocally and vehemently denies the allegations which are the subject of the civil complaint,” the statement said. For complete 49ers coverage follow us on Flipboard.

The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office reviewed the criminal case and rejected it for insufficient evidence on Oct. 25, 2016, but declined to elaborate further.

Typically, sexual assaults that are reported weeks or months after they allegedly occurred can be difficult to prosecute. Any physical evidence, for instance, is usually limited or non-existent by the time the investigation begins.

The lawsuit says that Ms. V was a virgin at the time and was afraid to come forward for several months, and eventually sought medical treatment for continued vaginal pain in April 2016. The hospital concluded that Ms. V had been sexually assaulted and contacted San Jose police as required by law, said Micha Star Liberty, another attorney for the victim.

Ms. V declined to talk with police at the time but did so the following month, Liberty said.

Hayne and Ms. V knew each other through mutual acquaintances, but did not otherwise have an established relationship, Liberty said. On the night of the alleged rape, Ms. V and her friends met Hayne and his friends at a bar for after-dinner drinks. Liberty said Ms. V became heavily intoxicated and Hayne took her back to his apartment in San Jose.

According to the suit, Ms. V’s final memories were falling face down on a bed, seeing a light from a hallway and continued sharp vaginal pain. She awoke the next morning in a large pool of blood naked, alone and still in significant vaginal pain, Liberty said.

“The victim was a young impressionable woman out with friends in a location and environment she thought she could trust only to find that Mr. Hayne used her level of intoxication and his physical stature to deprive her of the ability to make a personal decision about whether or not she wanted to have sex,” Liberty said. “As a result, she suffered greatly emotionally and physically.”

The district attorney, according to the lawsuit, said that there was not enough evidence to prove the crime of rape beyond a reasonable doubt. The suit includes claims of sexual battery, gender violence, infliction of emotional distress and negligence.

The statement released on Hayne’s behalf said the ex-49er “provided all reasonable assistance” to the district attorney.

When asked why the lawsuit wasn’t filed soon after the district attorney’s decision, Liberty said: “Having represented sexual assault victims for over 17 years, what we know is that the process of mustering the strength and courage to come forward and speak out takes time.” Start your day with the news you need from the Bay Area and beyond.

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A case-management conference has been scheduled for April 10.

The 29-year-old Hayne left a high-profile career in Australia to play football for the first time with the 49ers, and he became a summer sensation in making their 2015 roster as a punt returner and running back. He appeared in their first six games, got released on Halloween, returned for their final two games and ultimately announced his retirement from the NFL on May 15, 2016 — around the time Ms. V got in touch with the police.

Hayne then tried out with the Fiji Rugby Sevens team in hopes of participating in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. He did not make that team, and he returned to his native Australia and resumed his rugby-league career, spending the past two years in Queensland before recently re-signing with his native Sydney club.

In a press release issued by the 49ers upon retiring, Hayne said, “I am retiring from the NFL because the Fiji Rugby Sevens team reached out to me about the opportunity to join the team for the upcoming Olympics, and I simply could no pass that chance up. The Olympics has been something I have admired since I was a little boy, and it is an opportunity I feel very similar to me joining the NFL.”

Hayne competed last month for Fiji in the Rugby League World Cup and is back in Sydney with his original rugby-league team, the Parramatta Eels.

A spokesman for Australia’s National Rugby League said its Integrity Unit is monitoring the civil case, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

“We note that the police in the United States did not proceed with any criminal proceedings but we will review the information available and continue to monitor the civil case,” a spokesman said.

Staff writers Tracey Kaplan and Cam Inman contributed to this report.

View the lawsuit documents below:

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