Attorneys representing Illinois men’s basketball guard Terrence Shannon Jr. have issued a public statement as he faces rape charges connected to an early September incident in Kansas.
Shannon was booked in Kansas on the charges Wednesday, and has been indefinitely suspended by Illinois pending the outcome of the investigation.
Shannon is facing felony charges of rape in relation to a Sept. 9 incident in Lawrence, the location of Kansas University. Shannon was in Lawrence for Illinois’ football game against the Jayhawks, but according to the school he was not part of the team’s traveling party and was not there in any official capacity.
Shannon, a preseason All-Big Ten selection, returned to Lawrence this week to face those charges, and posted bond before returning to Illinois, according to his attorney Mark Sutter.
In a statement, Sutter says that the allegations first surfaced in September, and his client intends to contest the charges in court.
“Since September, when these allegations surfaced, Terrence has cooperated with law enforcement throughout the investigation, declaring his innocence from the beginning. Now, several months later, my office learned that formal charges were filed against him yesterday,” he said. “In less than 24 hours, my client responded, and he voluntarily surrendered to local authorities for processing and release. Terrence is innocent of these charges, and he intends to take his case to trial.”
He is alleged to have “knowingly engaged in sexual intercourse with a person..who did not consent to the sexual intercourse,” according to prosecutors. If convicted, Shannon would face a minimum sentence of just over 12 years in prison.
As a result of the criminal charges, Shannon has been suspended indefinitely by the Illinois men’s basketball team.
“The university and Division of Intercollegiate Athletics have shown time and again that we have zero tolerance for sexual misconduct,” Athletic Director Josh Whitman said in a statement. “At the same time, DIA policy affords student-athletes appropriate levels of due process based on the nature and severity of the allegations.”
Whitman is expected to address media prior to Illinois’ game vs. Fairleigh Dickinson on Friday night.
Shannon, a preseason All-Big Ten selection, is the team’s leading scorer, averaging 21.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
Illinois currently sits at No. 11 in the AP Top-25 rankings.
