re: No charges filed against Jameis Winston

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Yet the one person you would want making this decision if you were Winston or the alleged victim is Meggs. He is 70 years old and serving his seventh and last term. The former police officer has dedicated his career to the state attorney’s office. He’s tangled with FSU sports stars before and has not bowed to the worship of them or former coach Bobby Bowden.

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“It’s a damn hard job, but I’ve never seen Willie do a favor for the athletes or the school,” said attorney David McGee, who started with Meggs as an intern in 1975. “The political stuff rolls off his back. He’s a hard-headed son of a gun. He won’t care much because he’s not running for re-election again.

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“You can’t be in that town and not get cases involving FSU athletes. They are 19-year-old boys feeling their oats. The biggest mistake is to listen to politicians or media or fans. You only listen to the cold, hard facts.”

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In a statement, the alleged victim’s family said her attorney, Patricia Carroll, was told by a detective that in “a big football town” the victim “needs to think long and hard before proceeding against him because she will be raked over the coals and her life will be made miserable.”

Not untrue, said McGee, who has prosecuted rape cases.

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“It’s a disservice if you do not advise them up front how the victim’s morals and motives will be questioned even more than those of the accused,” he said. “These are often complicated scenarios. Sometimes, the people involved don’t even know what really happened because they had a bellyful of liquor. It’s a difficult process, and if you lose, it’s devastating.”

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Based on what is known, including the 11-month lag time, DNA evidence that Winston will argue shows only consensual sex and two witnesses in his favor, the case does not appear to be provable beyond a reasonable doubt, McGee said.

“This one is a dog, and if I’m in the state attorney’s office, I don’t want it,” he said. “It’s a problematic, one-on-one case. Willie has to ask, ‘Can I win it?’ If he says no, it’s not ethical to take the case.”

Adding to the problematic nature, at one point she said she did not want to prosecute.

“And that was back when he was not ‘Famous Jameis,’” McGee said.

A year ago, Winston was a freshman backup. Today, he is the most dynamic college quarterback in the land. But his powers on the field are useless while he waits.

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