The attorney for a Tuscaloosa man implicated in the alleged sexual assault of a former University of Alabama student has gone on the offense with a full-page ad in Thursday's Tuscaloosa News.

The student, Megan Rondini, killed herself after alleging the rape and transferring to another college. Her parents have since filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit against the accused, 36-year-old T.J. Bunn, as well as two university employees, the Tuscaloosa County sheriff, a sheriff's deputy and a sheriff's office investigator.

Bunn's lawyer, Ivey Gilmore, said in the ad - entitled "Character Assassination In The Internet Age." - that he has now reviewed all of the evidence obtained by law enforcement in the case and that while the lawsuit claims a sexual assault took place, Rondini's text messages to friends immediately before the incident make it clear that she intended to have a sexual encounter with Bunn.

"To be clear, this case is not a matter of 'he said, she said,''' Gilmore wrote. "It is this young woman's own words, and her own text messages that led every investigating authority to conclude she had not been sexually assaulted."

An attorney for the firm that filed the wrongful death lawsuit had this to say about the ad: "This paid advertisement reeks of desperation and is a clear attempt to bully the Rondini Family,'' said Ontario Tillman of the Maxwell Law Firm. "The text messages Sweet-T's lawyer refer to show exactly how a situation can devolve into a nightmare in a matter of minutes. It's no accident that this paid ad carefully avoids to mention the messages and phone calls that occurred immediately after that tragic night. This is classic case of victim blaming and a sad attempt to justify a sexual assault."

Rondini was a UA student from Texas when she reported to police she was raped by Bunn in 2015. Rondini's story became public in a June BuzzFeed story, as told by her parents, Michael and Cynthia Rondini, family and friends. They claimed the 20-year-old was mistreated by Tuscaloosa investigators, the university and DCH Regional Medical Center.

The lawsuit, filed by attorney Leroy Maxwell Jr., identifies Bunn as being part of a family that is "well connected and powerful in the Tuscaloosa community, and were major financial supporters of UA." Bunn works at ST Bunn Construction Company, which is across the street from the Innisfree Pub, where Rondini reportedly became drunk, or was drugged, before being raped for 30 minutes in July 2015.

The lawsuit names Terry J Bunn, Jr, two UA employees, Tuscaloosa County Sheriff Ronald S Abernathy, an investigator, deputy and the University of Alabama and its president Dr. Stuart R Bell (the university and Bell were added as defendants on July 26).

Gilmore has previously said in a statement that Rondini invited Bunn and another man to her apartment where they shared drinks. She then left her apartment with Bunn of her own free will and went to Bunn's home.

Here are excerpts from the Buzzfeed article: "Bunn brought her over to his bed and pulled her shorts to he side while she looked away from him, she told investigators. The incident report would later state that she "verbally informed Bunn that she did not want to have sex with him and that she needed to rejoin her friends at Innisfree," but that he "ignored these statements and continued to engage in intercourse with her." Afterward, Bunn passed out, and she felt she could leave safely, she said. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't open his door. She started texting friends around 1 a.m., begging for help. "OMG," she wrote to one, "I can't get out of the room."

Megan told police that, in a panic, she climbed through Bunn's second-story window, jumped onto a gate and then to the dark, unfamiliar street below. When she realized she didn't have her keys, she started frantically searching for them, even climbing back into Bunn's room and then out again. Next, she checked Bunn's Mercedes, where she found his wallet and a pistol. She grabbed $3 in case she had to take a cab and the gun "for safety," she told investigators. Megan didn't know how to handle guns, she'd later explain, and she accidentally fired it before dropping the weapon to the ground. Finally, a friend picked her up. They arrived at Tuscaloosa's DCH Regional Medical Center around 2:40 a.m."

The lawsuit filed on behalf of her family claims that authorities sided with Bunn's version of events and did not thoroughly follow-up on Rondini's story, and that an investigating officer was more interested in finding out whether Rondini committed any crimes on the night of the rape. The university allegedly "deliberately and repeatedly denied services and mishandled accommodations with hostility toward" Rondini, the suit goes on to say. The lawsuit claims Rondini confided in a UA counselor who told her she could no longer give her therapy because she was a family friend of the Bunns, and that a second counselor would not see Rondini unless she first took anxiety medication.

The lawsuit also claims UA did not accommodate Megan after the rape, alleging that she saw Bunn's car outside her apartment and saw her alleged rapist on the Tuscaloosa campus. Prior to the lawsuit, the university had issued this statement:

"The University of Alabama has been deeply saddened by the death of Megan Rondini, and we continue to offer our sympathy to her friends and family. Information published by news outlets this week has unfortunately ignored some significant facts," UA said. "When Megan went to the hospital, a university advocate met her at the hospital to provide support and stayed with her throughout the examination process. Megan also received information from university representatives regarding services available to her on campus, including counseling through the university's Women & Gender Resource Center. When she sought counseling and her first therapist identified a potential conflict as defined by her professional obligations, Megan was immediately introduced to another therapist, who provided care and support. Additionally, the UA Title IX Office was in contact with Megan, including offering academic accommodations and helping to streamline her withdrawal when Megan elected to return to Texas."

Gilmore's ad, however, states:

"The horrible, misleading and blatantly false accusations of BuzzFeed and malicious false assertions of social media attackers are designed to do nothing more than attempt to extort money with a lawsuit,'' he wrote. "These 'journalists' have used selective facts, gossip and have outright lied about the facts of the case."

"So why is the tragic suicide of this young woman now the subject of a lawsuit? It is because some of those involved have determined that money can be gained, one way or another, at the expense of this young woman's reputation,'' Gilmore wrote. "This matter is now before the Court, and in an open court, ALL the evidence, the text messages, the statements she made, photographs on her phone, everything will be aired for consideration. The full review of the evidence will show that law enforcement, the grand jury, the hospital and others involved acted properly because no sexual assault occurred."

The ad goes on to say, "It is regretful that BuzzFeed and a group of trial lawyers have chosen to potentially expose the most intimate and sensitive (and embarrassing) aspects of this young woman's life in this lawsuit,'' he wrote. "Further, it is regretful that the young woman's own texts, emails, photographs and statements will bring such embarrassment and intense examination for her friends and associates. But that is their choice and the result of their actions."

Gilmore said Bunn's family is consulting with their own attorneys in the aftermath of intense scrutiny of the entire family. "The Bunn family, T.J. Bunn's mother and father, his other relatives and S.T. Bunn Contruction have nothing to do with the civil action that has been brought against T.J. Bunn. But these internet 'news' sources have gone beyond misrepresentation of facts, they maligned, insulted and in fact probably libeled members of the family and their friends and associates."

Story updated at 10:45 a.m. July 28, 2017 to name the specific defendants in the lawsuit