Former Vanderbilt football player Brandon Vandenburg received a 17-year prison sentence from a Nashville judge Friday after being found guilty in June on multiple charges related to the 2013 rape of an unconscious woman in his dorm room.Stacey Barchenger of the Tennessean reported Criminal Court Judge Monte Watkins handed down the sentence on five counts of aggravated rape, two counts of aggravated sexual battery and unlawful photography for Vandenburg's role in the incident, which also saw three other football players charged.TheTennesseanreport noted the rape victim did not appear in court for the sentencing, but assistant district attorney general Jan Norman relayed a statement, which read in part:Please do not use my absence as an excuse for leniency, as it in no way diminishes the profound and insidious impact of Mr. Vandenburg on me and my life.I still ask that he receive the full sentence allowed under the law for orchestrating the sustained 30-minute gang rape against me, a defenseless woman who trusted him.The minimum sentence is not enough for what this man did to me.Mike McPhateof theNew York Timesreported in June the victim was dating Vandenburg at the time of the incident. She recalled going drinking with him at a bar and then waking up in pain in his bed without any recollection of the time in between.While Vandenburg admitted to investigators he witnessed the attack by three Vanderbilt teammatesCory Batey, Jaborian McKenzie and Brandon Bankshis defense team argued he could not be held responsible because he was intoxicated at the time, according to theNew York Times.Meanwhile, the report noted prosecutors stated he urged other players to commit the rape and took video of the rape, parts of which were shown during the trial. They made the case that he was culpable, and the jury agreed afterfive hours of deliberationsin June.Vandenburg, 23, had previously been found guilty in a joint trial alongside Batey, but thoseverdicts were thrown outdue to juror misconduct, leading to separate retrials.Batey was found guilty of aggravated rape in April and received a15-year sentencein July.Demetria Kalodimosof WSMV provided jailhouse recordings in September that showcased the former player's efforts to rally the community to come to his defense.TheTennesseanreport stated Banks and McKenzie have both pleaded guilty for their roles in the incident, and their cases remain pending.
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