Winston was already likely to face a code of conduct hearing, but now that hearing will be conducted by a neutral third party.
Multiple reports late Friday indicated that Florida State will assign Jameis Winston's code of conduct hearing to a neutral third party.
Winston faces the code of conduct hearing as a result of an accusation of sexual assault from December 2012. The case received intense media scrutiny, but Winston was not charged criminally after an investigation by the Tallahassee Police Department and the State Attorney's office.
Here's ESPN's Mark Schlabach on the timing and selection process:
In a letter sent to Winston and his attorney on Friday, FSU interim president Garnett Stokes and vice president for student affairs Mary B. Coburn notified Winston that he might be charged with one of four violations of FSU's student conduct code regarding sexual conduct.
According to FSU's student conduct policy, Winston has five school days to contact the school's Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities to schedule an information hearing, in which he will be advised about his rights and the upcoming student conduct hearing. The student conduct hearing would be held as soon as possible after the informational hearing and would determine whether or not Winston is charged.
FSU officials have informed Winston that they have identified three individuals from outside the university who are willing to hear the case. Winston and his accuser will each have an opportunity to strike one of the people from hearing the case.
USA Today writes that the decision to have a third party conduct the hearing is borne out of fairness concerns:
FSU's decision to effectively outsource the hearing comes as attorneys for Winston and the woman have raised concerns about the fairness of any school proceeding following nearly a year of intense news media coverage and a federal investigation into whether the school is in compliance with Title IX.
The decision, though, is unusual. Winston's teammates, Chris Casher and Ronald Darby, both faced student code of conduct disciplinary hearings earlier this year, although it is unknown if a third party conducted those hearings. Neither ESPN nor USA Today makes mention of the distinction.
Potential punishments for violations of the student code of conduct range from reprimand or probation, to expulsion.