Matt Araiza accused of rape, served with a lawsuit.

[TheyCallMeAndy]

It’s finally over. Lock this puppy up and let’s move on. 

[CountDorkula]

Just now, GoBills808 said:

Again, I don't need the courts to decide how I should feel about something.

remember that time a drunken lawyer hit and kiled a girl, went home and tired to hide the evidence was found not guilty.

 

The court decided he wasn't guilty, so now im cool with that whole situation. 

[ExiledInIllinois]

Just now, GoBills808 said:

Again, I don't need the courts to decide how I should feel about something.

Of course WE don't... WE are special snowflakes... BUT WE have to honor the court's decision or there's chaos, anarchy.

[Warcodered]

2 minutes ago, ExiledInIllinois said:

What if the court finds him innocent.  Will the moral do-gooders accept it. 

 

The road to perdition is paved with good intentions.

From the whole Haack thing I figured they had a good read on things and were going to let things play out, wasn't going to feel great about it but whatever. As things progressed got less certain of that but overall I'm just relieved to be moving on from this whole thing.

[ExiledInIllinois]

2 minutes ago, Beck Water said:

 

C'mon Exiled.  You know better than that. 

 

Courts do not find people innocent.  That's not what they do.  They find someone guilty, or not guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.  Civil courts find it "more likely than not" to be true, meaning it can be 50.01% likely or 49.99% unlikely.

 

None of that means "innocent"

 

 

Huh?

Sorry for wording.  I meant thar indirectly.   Find him not guilty = stays innocent.

[chongli]

10 minutes ago, ExiledInIllinois said:

The League needs to stand by the Bills here... Morally.

 

If they want to stand by us, I'll take a 6th round compensatory pick in next year's draft! (Not going to happen, but just saying.)

[UKBillFan]

Just now, Mango said:

72 hours ago I was counting down the days until kick off. 
 

Today not so much. I feel a bit dirty as a fan stills 

 

12 days for it to wash off. I'm only guessing but, if I'm right, I can understand both Beane and McDermott's point of view. And it doesn't sit right that, had it been someone of more importance to the team than the punter then it would have been treated very differently (and that goes across the NFL, not just the Bills).

[ExiledInIllinois]

7 minutes ago, Mango said:

The rape kit has yet to be processed. 
 

This happens a lot in the US. There are 200k unprocessed rape kits in the US. Think about that for a minute. 

Wow! Like @aristocrat said! That's where I had misgivings!

[Kellyhero68]

7 minutes ago, Mango said:

The rape kit has yet to be processed. 
 

This happens a lot in the US. There are 200k unprocessed rape kits in the US. Think about that for a minute. 

That is beyond stupid. 

[Since1981]

employers and mine can fire me for any reason other than race sex color religion. It’s the correct move here for his employer and the organization.

 

(P.S. SDPD, eeek, slow but that’s another matter)

Edited August 28, 2022 by Since1981

[Bills2022]

10 minutes ago, Mango said:

The rape kit has yet to be processed. 
 

This happens a lot in the US. There are 200k unprocessed rape kits in the US. Think about that for a minute. 

 

True, but that is primarily because police handle each situation differently. Rape kits are meaningless in many cases. DA's need much more than a rape kit to bring charges, especially in a case like this where it does nothing but confirm what both sides already said  happened. The rape kit is useless to the DA in this case. 

Edited August 28, 2022 by Bills2022

[CountDorkula]

2 minutes ago, Since1981 said:

employers and mine can fire me for any reason other than race sex color religion. It’s the correct move here for his employer and the organization.

 

(P.S. SDPD, eeek, slow but that’s another matter)

but I was told earlier that Arazia could sue the Bills if they cut him. 

[Since1981]

1 minute ago, Bills2022 said:

rape kit is useless to the DA in this case

It would prove who was present with a 17 year old in California

[RunTheBall]

Beane clearly didn’t know the allegations that were in the civil lawsuit. I think that was the deciding factor. He said if even one of those things was true it was a non-starter for the Bills. That implies that there were allegations in the suit the Bills we’re not aware of, and as he said, Araizas story didn’t change from July to now.

 

The best thing about this thread is it identified the maybe 10 posters I’d want in in a foxhole with me because the number of moral purists on here who’d throw people under the bus on an allegation alone is astounding.

 

I think the Bills made the right call for the organization. I think Beane and McDermot are honest no BS guys who handled this about as well as they could.

 

I also think Matt Araiza is not going to have any criminal charges placed. If I were him I wouldn’t settle if he feels he’s 100% innocent. He will be in the NFL with some other team next year if not sooner.

 

 

[Beck Water]

13 minutes ago, muppy said:

I think it is exactly as Beane stated. They wanted to not rush to an unfair judgment. I think that is fair for both the team AND araiza The ending is the same result it Sucks. Alll of this saga does in all its tawdry detail. I hope the Bills put this behind them ASAP and carry on.. Crazy last coupla days in the chatroom eh mateys?

 

SMH

 

I want to put this all behind us.  I want beyond anything for the TEAM to put this all behind them and not be distracted.

 

But honestly - does what Beane said make sense?  The Bills knew, at least as of July 30 when the plaintiff's lawyer called Kathryn D'Angelo and told her about the pending civil suit and the "boulders" of what was in it.  If they started investigating then and were dedicated to "not rush" and to collect information, how did their "information gathering" suddenly accelerate in the 48 hrs since the civil lawsuit was filed?

 

It is possible, that when faced with the lawsuit, the Bills information gathering went into overdrive and turned up something that gave them real pause.  And if so, Beane and McDermott quite likely can't talk about it for legal reasons.   They may have called in a chip or had an investigator call in a chip and get some inside skinny from the SDPD or something.  They can't say, if that's so.  So there's that.

 

But I think it's also possible that

1) either McDermott was getting the 'high level summary' version from Beane, and when the lawsuit filing came out and he read it he threw up in his mouth and said  "Not on My Team, this has to go play out somewhere else"  (or, he watched guys on the team who have wives and daughters throwing up in their mouths)

2) or someone in the Bills PR/Customer Relations department pulled the plug and said "this is a freakin' PR disaster, make it go away"

3) or one of the Pegulas said "Hell to the No, do you hear me? HELL TO THE NO!"

 

Edited August 28, 2022 by Beck Water

[Scott7975]

37 minutes ago, mannc said:

Well, looks like Dan Gilleon accomplished his goal...now his client gets to sue and try to collect from an unemployed 22-year old...

 

Seems to me that, for the girl at least, it isn't really about money.  Its about not letting someone just get away with the horrendous thing that happened.  Being kicked from an NFL team is the start of that.  This may or may not be true but its the impression I get.  If it were about money then the suit could have waited until payday.

[Beck Water]

3 minutes ago, RunTheBall said:

Beane clearly didn’t know the allegations that were in the civil lawsuit.

 

He said they knew the "boulders" after talking to the plaintiff's lawyer - whatever that means to you?

[muppy]

55 minutes ago, Matt_In_NH said:

Not saying anyone is handling this wrong but Cornelius Bennett was accused and pleaded guilty and is a convicted sex offender.   The details on that were also bad but he is still beloved.  Times have changed.  

that is what is called redemption. Has Bennet redeemed himself of his past sins? I don't want to get philosophical on a secular message board But the topic you broach I think is very valid. A friend of mine likes to say " the more things change, the more they stay the same" Relating to social issues that imo is not the case. And celebrity has a lot to do with it. anyway....

[Bermuda Triangle]

I'll get slammed for this, but I thought that Beane came off pretty poorly in the press conference.

[Albany,n.y.]

10 minutes ago, CountDorkula said:

but I was told earlier that Arazia could sue the Bills if they cut him. 

He & about 850 other guys who get cut by Tuesday will all be filing a class action suit Wednesday morning. 😄 

[ExiledInIllinois]

25 minutes ago, Chandler#81 said:

So, is this 255 page thread done? Araiza as a Bill is old news. Upward on onward.

No.

 

[Warcodered]

3 minutes ago, Beck Water said:

 

I want to put this all behind us.  I want beyond anything for the TEAM to put this all behind them and not be distracted.

 

But honestly - does what Beane said make sense?  The Bills knew, at least as of July 30 when the plaintiff's lawyer called Kathryn D'Angelo and told her about the pending civil suit and the "boulders" of what was in it.  If they started investigating then and were dedicated to "not rush" and to collect information, how did their "information gathering" suddenly accelerate in the 48 hrs since the civil lawsuit was filed?

 

It is possible, that when faced with the lawsuit, the Bills information gathering went into overdrive and turned up something that gave them real pause.  And if so, Beane and McDermott quite likely can't talk about it for legal reasons. 

 

But I think it's also possible that

1) either McDermott was getting the 'high level summary' version from Beane, and when the lawsuit filing came out and he read it he threw up in his mouth and said  "Not on My Team, this has to go play out somewhere else"  (or, he watched guys on the team who have wives and daughters throwing up in their mouths)

2) or someone in the Bills PR/Customer Relations department pulled the plug and said "this is a freakin' disaster, make it go away"

3) or one of the Pegulas said "Hell to the No, do you hear me?"

 

I think what was happening was they were trying to thread the needle of doing the right thing with terrible accusations but still taking Ariaza's side of the story seriously as well. The lawsuit and it all blowing up put them in a spot where they couldn't slow play it anymore.

[LabattBlue]

The move had to be made.  It was the right choice. 

[RunTheBall]

2 minutes ago, Beck Water said:

 

He said they knew the "boulders" after talking to the plaintiff's lawyer - whatever that means to you?

Did you watch the press conference or do you not have WI-FI on Mount Virtue?

 

Beane clearly said when he read the allegations in the 11 page suit that there were allegations in there that if even one was true, it was a non starter. That says to me that he was aware of the “boulders” whatever the hell that means but the details were left out. He clearly got more detailed information from the actual suit than he had before. Read between the lines. He’s not saying Araiza lied to them he’s saying there was new information that he didn’t’ have on July 30th.

 

Beane and McDermott have done nothing but be straight up and more open/honest than most GM/Coach combos in the league. I think they deserve the benefit of the doubt and handled this situation as best they could despite all the holy warriors on here saying they should have cast Araiza aside the second the victims lawyer contacted them in July or the second the suit was filed.

 

[MasterStrategist]

2 minutes ago, Beck Water said:

 

I want to put this all behind us.  I want beyond anything for the TEAM to put this all behind them and not be distracted.

 

But honestly - does what Beane said make sense?  The Bills knew, at least as of July 30 when the plaintiff's lawyer called Kathryn D'Angelo and told her about the pending civil suit and the "boulders" of what was in it.  If they started investigating then and were dedicated to "not rush" and to collect information, how did their "information gathering" suddenly accelerate in the 48 hrs since the civil lawsuit was filed?

 

It is possible, that when faced with the lawsuit, the Bills information gathering went into overdrive and turned up something that gave them real pause.  And if so, Beane and McDermott quite likely can't talk about it for legal reasons. 

 

But I think it's also possible that

1) either McDermott was getting the 'high level summary' version from Beane, and when the lawsuit filing came out and he read it he threw up in his mouth and said  "Not on My Team, this has to go play out somewhere else"  (or, he watched guys on the team who have wives and daughters throwing up in their mouths)

2) or someone in the Bills PR/Customer Relations department pulled the plug and said "this is a freakin' disaster, make it go away"

3) or one of the Pegulas said "Hell to the No, do you hear me?"

 

Honestly, it could be as simple as they sat back down with Matt after receiving the "actual 11 page" civil suit allegation and began to ask him specifics.  Perhaps they got a feeling he wasn't being truthful, perhaps his story was changing from before, but at the end of the day...Beane and McD had to make a decision RIGHT NOW.  It's unfortunate, because it's always better to let more info come out but they got as much info as possible to this juncture and were at a crossroads.  Very serious allegation and if they weren't 100% convinced (again as of now), that he was innocent then they needed to move on.

 

As far as the team getting past this, I'm not concerned. Each new day will now be a focus on week 1, not Matt Araiza, and we have great leaders in the locker room and coaches, where a situation like this could blow up for another team...I think we can "find a way" and move past it, we have great team camaraderie.

 

Finding a punter, I'm optimistic that we will at least be better than Matt Haack from a yr ago...lots of current options and potential cuts.  That to me is good enough, for an explosive offense.

 

 

 

 

[Since1981]

Just now, Bermuda Triangle said:

Beane came off pretty poorly

I thought he did good with a somber, solemn tone. Bills have a right to employ who they want. 

[UKBillFan]

1 minute ago, MasterStrategist said:

Honestly, it could be as simple as they sat back down with Matt after receiving the "actual 11 page" civil suit allegation and began to ask him specifics.  Perhaps they got a feeling he wasn't being truthful, perhaps his story was changing from before, but at the end of the day...Beane and McD had to make a decision RIGHT NOW.  It's unfortunate, because it's always better to let more info come out but they got as much info as possible to this juncture and were at a crossroads.  Very serious allegation and if they weren't 100% convinced (again as of now), that he was innocent then they needed to move on.

 

As far as the team getting past this, I'm not concerned. Each new day will now be a focus on week 1, not Matt Araiza, and we have great leaders in the locker room and coaches, where a situation like this could blow up for another team...I think we can "find a way" and move past it, we have great team camaraderie.

 

Finding a punter, I'm optimistic that we will at least be better than Matt Haack from a yr ago...lots of current options and potential cuts.  That to me is good enough, for an explosive offense.

 

 

 

 

Just to verify - Beane confirmed Araiza’s story has not changed from the first time he asked for it to the last.

[Bangarang]

Let’s be real, the national scrutiny made this decision a necessity. 

[Shake_My_Head]

2 minutes ago, Beck Water said:

 

He said they knew the "boulders" after talking to the plaintiff's lawyer - whatever that means to you?

It's very likely that there were a lot more damaging details contained in the civil suit that dropped Friday than in the original discussion the Bills attorney had with them on July 31.   The civil suit claims were designed for maximum, nuclear def-con 5-level PR purposes.   That may have surprised the team, which as Beane said, knew the basic outline of the accusations and was trying to get more facts to varify what transpired.

[Aussie Joe]

33 minutes ago, Chandler#81 said:

So, is this 255 page thread done? Araiza as a Bill is old news. Upward on onward.

Do you think the Bills media moves on now …case closed?

 

I gotta feeling that “what did the Bills know at what time” thing goes on for a bit longer..

 

And of course …what gets reported in the media about the Bills gets posted here a nano second later…

 

Edited August 28, 2022 by Aussie Joe

[Bills2022]

8 minutes ago, Since1981 said:

It would prove who was present with a 17 year old in California

 

Not necessarily, which is why police and DA's leave so many rape kits unprocessed.  Plenty of rapes occur where the rape kit shows no DNA evidence from the rapist. It allows defense attorneys an easy out, even if all other evidence suggests the person was the rapist. 

 

The other reason why so many go unprocessed is because when the people involved agree they were there, but they claim the sex was consentual, the rape kit becomes irrelevant. 

 

 

 

[Since1981]

1 minute ago, Bangarang said:

 

Let’s be real, the national scrutiny made this decision a necessity. 

 

And let’s also put the spotlight back on SD STATE, SDPD!

[RunTheBall]

12 minutes ago, Bermuda Triangle said:

I'll get slammed for this, but I thought that Beane came off pretty poorly in the press conference.

What should he have said that would make you think he came off better?

 

I’m not saying you are in this group, but there are a bunch of posters on here who wouldn’t be satisfied if Beane and McDermot dragged Araiza on to the field house and cut his nuts off before hanging him. 

Edited August 28, 2022 by RunTheBall

[muppy]

15 minutes ago, Beck Water said:

 

I want to put this all behind us.  I want beyond anything for the TEAM to put this all behind them and not be distracted.

 

But honestly - does what Beane said make sense?  The Bills knew, at least as of July 30 when the plaintiff's lawyer called Kathryn D'Angelo and told her about the pending civil suit and the "boulders" of what was in it.  If they started investigating then and were dedicated to "not rush" and to collect information, how did their "information gathering" suddenly accelerate in the 48 hrs since the civil lawsuit was filed?

 

It is possible, that when faced with the lawsuit, the Bills information gathering went into overdrive and turned up something that gave them real pause.  And if so, Beane and McDermott quite likely can't talk about it for legal reasons.   They may have called in a chip or had an investigator call in a chip and get some inside skinny from the SDPD or something.  They can't say, if that's so.  So there's that.

 

But I think it's also possible that

1) either McDermott was getting the 'high level summary' version from Beane, and when the lawsuit filing came out and he read it he threw up in his mouth and said  "Not on My Team, this has to go play out somewhere else"  (or, he watched guys on the team who have wives and daughters throwing up in their mouths)

2) or someone in the Bills PR/Customer Relations department pulled the plug and said "this is a freakin' PR disaster, make it go away"

3) or one of the Pegulas said "Hell to the No, do you hear me? HELL TO THE NO!"

 

I appreciate your thoughts.  And at the same time, (Not trying to stifle conversation) I am less interested right now in all the backstory and what all the details are....Im  just taking a sigh of relief...at least now we have a finite answer araiza is gone. I understand all the speculation and how it shows in effect how mistakes may have happened.  But moreso Im just tired of thinking about it. lol This whole debacle has been stressful for us as fans. Forget about how much moreso for the team.

 More details may follow but if not Im okay with that.  I'll be better off not having to think about it anymore . Speaking only for myself.

Edited August 28, 2022 by muppy

[Don Otreply]

Please close this thread, punt god has left the building, he is no longer employed by the Buffalo Bills organization, thank you to which ever Mod shuts this down.

 

Go Bills!!!

[Beck Water]

9 minutes ago, RunTheBall said:

Did you watch the press conference or do you not have WI-FI on Mount Virtue?

 

That seems un-called for

 

So much so that to address the rest of your post seems no point

Edited August 28, 2022 by Beck Water

[Aussie Joe]

Just now, Don Otreply said:

Please close this thread, punt god has left the building, he is no longer employed by the Buffalo Bills organization, thank you to which ever Mod shuts this down.

 

Go Bills!!!

Or you could just choose to ignore the thread

[Hermes]

4 minutes ago, MasterStrategist said:

Honestly, it could be as simple as they sat back down with Matt after receiving the "actual 11 page" civil suit allegation and began to ask him specifics.  Perhaps they got a feeling he wasn't being truthful, perhaps his story was changing from before, but at the end of the day...Beane and McD had to make a decision RIGHT NOW.  It's unfortunate, because it's always better to let more info come out but they got as much info as possible to this juncture and were at a crossroads.  Very serious allegation and if they weren't 100% convinced (again as of now), that he was innocent then they needed to move on.

 

As far as the team getting past this, I'm not concerned. Each new day will now be a focus on week 1, not Matt Araiza, and we have great leaders in the locker room and coaches, where a situation like this could blow up for another team...I think we can "find a way" and move past it, we have great team camaraderie.

 

Finding a punter, I'm optimistic that we will at least be better than Matt Haack from a yr ago...lots of current options and potential cuts.  That to me is good enough, for an explosive offense.

 

 

 

 

 

The Bills had no choice to drop him regardless. Even if they knew with 100% certainty thay he was innocent. The media circus that would plague the team would be an absolute nightmare. Worst case scenario is that they keep him on and then he does get charged and arrested. How much does that derail the season, and what does that do to the reputation you've built?

 

[Bermuda Triangle]

Just now, RunTheBall said:

What should he have said that would make you think he came of better?

 

I’m not saying you are in this group, but there are a bunch of posters on here who wouldn’t be satisfied if Beane and McDermot dragged Araiza into the field house and cut his nuts off before hanging him. 

the nonsense about the release being in Araiza's best interest...over and over again.   Does he really expect people to believe that's the reason they decided to release Araiza, and not the PR nightmare they have faced (and would continue to face had Araiza remained on the team)?  What changed since yesterday morning?

 

Did BB say that the team had no idea about the incident until a few weeks ago?

[Motorin']

5 minutes ago, RunTheBall said:

Did you watch the press conference or do you not have WI-FI on Mount Virtue?

 

Beane clearly said when he read the allegations in the 11 page suit that there were allegations in there that if even one was true, it was a non starter. That says to me that he was aware of the “boulders” whatever the hell that means but the details were left out. He clearly got more detailed information from the actual suit than he had before. Read between the lines. He’s not saying Araiza lied to them he’s saying there was new information that he didn’t’ have on July 30th.

 

Beane and McDermott have done nothing but be straight up and more open/honest than most GM/Coach combos in the league. I think they deserve the benefit of the doubt and handled this situation as best they could despite all the holy warriors on here saying they should have cast Araiza aside the second the victims lawyer contacted them in July or the second the suit was filed.

 

 

Another major detail came out. Beane said they knew nothing, and Araiza's agent knew nothing leading up to the draft. And that had they known of these allegations he would have been off their draft board.

 

What looks even worse for Araiza is that the police were investigating long before the civil suit and before the draft, and he didn't disclose to the NFL or his agent.