Lawsuit alleging rape against punter Matt Araiza dropped

Former San Diego State and Buffalo Bills punter Matt Araiza has been dismissed from a lawsuit that alleges a 17-year-old girl was raped at an off-campus party in Oct. 2021 after an agreement was reached with Jane Doe.

Doe dropped Araiza from the lawsuit filed in Aug. 2022 while Araiza agreed to dismiss a defamation suit against Doe that was filed in July 2023.

The settlement was obtained and reviewed by ESPN.

Doe retains the right to continue the suit against the four other named defendants, former San Diego State teammates of Araiza. No money will be exchanged in the settlement agreement. Araiza also maintains the ability to sue the plaintiff’s attorney, Dan Gilleon, and his law office, and he has retained counsel to do so.

Gilleon did not respond to multiple requests for comment from ESPN.

«While we are here celebrating this victory with Matt and his family, the win is bittersweet. Matt has been forced to defend himself for the last sixteen months against false accusations and a campaign to ruin his career in the NFL,» Araiza’s lawyers, Dick Semerdjian and Kristen Bush said in a statement. «He will never get this time in his life back. We cannot overstate the importance to our system of justice of the presumption of innocence. Matt has always maintained his innocence, despite the public outcry that resulted when he was falsely accused of crimes and civil assault.

«Thankfully, there was extensive evidence that was key to securing Matt’s voluntary dismissal from this lawsuit. Matt was and has always been innocent. The case is over, and Matt has prevailed.»

His lawyers said that Araiza has the full intention of returning to the NFL to resume his football career.

The Bills released Araiza, who the team drafted in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL draft, on Aug. 27, two days after the lawsuit was filed. The New York Jets brought him in for a workout in May.

The lawsuit stated that Araiza, who was 21 at the time, led Doe to the side of the house and told her to perform oral sex on him before they had sexual intercourse. According to the lawsuit, Araiza then took her inside the home, where at least three other men were located, and then she was repeatedly raped for about 1½ hours.

The girl reported the alleged rape the following day to the San Diego Police Department, which investigated the allegations for nine months before turning over its investigation to prosecutors on Aug. 5, 2022.

On Dec. 7, 2022, the San Diego District Attorney’s office announced that criminal charges would not be filed in the case. Prosecutors said Araiza was not present when the alleged gang raped occurred, according to witness testimony included in evidence that prompted charges not to be filed. Araiza has said that they had consensual sex outside the house earlier in the evening, but that he never entered the home.

The district attorney’s office also was unable to prove that there was awareness of the then-17-year-old’s age or her intoxication level. At least two witnesses at the party allegedly heard the girl say she was 18, while others said they didn’t recall her age coming up.

The other named defendants in the case have all said the sex was consensual.

In May, San Diego State University concluded there were no findings against Araiza after investigating allegations of rape and gang rape.