The woman who accused Blackhawks prospect Garret Ross of revenge porn was “infuriated” when she learned how quickly the club had reinstated the player after the charges were dropped.
“I was sitting at my desk at work literally shaking I was so mad,” the woman told the Chicago Tribune. “I saw it coming, but it still was devastating, especially since it was made known that the charges were dropped due to jurisdiction issues, not due to lack of evidence.”
She added, “What bothered me the most was that it took the Blackhawks 40 days after Ross was booked and charged to suspend him, but less than 10 hours to reinstate him.”
From the Associated Press’ story on the charges being dropped:
DeKalb County prosecutors said the charges against 23-year-old Garret Ross were dropped Tuesday after investigators determined the incident happened while Ross was in Michigan.
The Chicago Blackhawks suspended Ross over the accusations that he shared an image of a woman engaged in a sexual act without her consent. The team said Tuesday he was reinstated with the IceHogs.
When Ross was suspended by the club on March 23, the ‘Hawks released a statement saying they had “learned” on March 19, just four days earlier, of “a legal proceeding” against him.
According to the Chicago Tribune, however, Ross had been “charged Feb. 2 after a four-month investigation in which investigators obtained a search warrant for his cellphone.”
That’s led to questions about when the ‘Hawks actually “learned” that Ross may be in legal trouble. Was it really March 19, as the club’s statement on March 23 seemed to insinuate?
The club would only say via another statement: “On March 23, 2016, the Chicago Blackhawks suspended Garret Ross after learning of a legal proceeding against him, and stated at that time that the suspension was indefinite pending the outcome of the legal process. We learned today, March 29, that the legal process concluded in Illinois with the dismissal of all charges against Garret. As a result, Garret Ross is reinstated with the IceHogs, effective immediately. We will have no further comment on the matter.”