Florida State star cornerback Ronald Darby was cleared by the school after a code of conduct hearing relating to his alleged role in the the sexual assault allegations against Jameis Winston. It is important to note that the school, because of FERPA, cannot announce these decisions. The source? Darby's attorney, speaking to USA Today. Here are the relevant quotes:
"We're happy with the outcome," said Gimbel. "We believe it's the right outcome, and Ronald Darby's happy to put all of this behind him."
Some familiar with the case questioned why Darby was charged with any code of conduct violation at all, and speculated that the only reason for it was the high-profile nature of the case.
Chris Casher's attorney, citing FERPA, declined to reveal the result of the hearing for his client, but said that he was pleased with the result. Casher faced the more serious charge of the two as he admitted in a police interview that he attempted to videotape Winston and the woman having (according to him, Darby and Winston) consensual sex.
"Out of respect for the process and FERPA, I can't tell you the details of what the decision is," said Adam Ellis, Casher's attorney. "I can tell you that we're pleased with it. We felt like Chris had a fair hearing. We feel like they gave him a fair shake."
For those trying to catch up, the rather lengthy review of what happened during the hearing can be found here.
Speaking with those involved in previous, similar cases, the expectation was that neither student would receive any sort of serious punishment, if any at all. The expectation was that it would be no more than some form of university probation or reprimand. Any more than that would have likely caused an uproar that the school was unfairly punishing the pair because they are football players, and because of the high-profile nature of the case.