Men’s ex-basketball players denied assault accusations

By Jonathan McFadden
mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com

Left: Robbie Dreher; Right: Julius Francis
Two men’s basketball players charged with criminal sexual conduct in the third degree this past April were found guilty of sexual misconduct by the Winthrop Judicial Council and expelled from the university before classes began this semester.

But, before criminal proceedings began, both players rebuffed their victim’s accusations of rape when questioned by police after the crime was committed, according to the original incident report. 

According to Dean of Students Bethany Marlowe, the judicial council determined that Robert (Robbie) Dreher, then-20, and Julius Francis, then-21, were both found in violation of Item C in the student handbook, which details prohibitions against “actual or threatened” sexual misconduct ranging from offensive touching to non-consensual sexual assault. 

Specifically, they were found in violation of “offensive touching,” “non-consensual sexual assault” and “forced sexual assault”--three variables the student handbook defines as sexual misconduct.

Dreher, a former guard for the Eagles and Greenville, S.C. native, was also found guilty of harassment/intimidation--Item D in the student handbook, which summarizes harassment as action causing alarm or risk by making “unwelcome sexual advances, or requests for sexual favors,” lodging criminal threats or using “fighting words.” 

Francis, who was a freshman sociology major and played center for the Eagles, hailed from Warri, Nigeria and attended Winthrop on scholarship. He has since transferred to Northern Oklahoma College, where he is a post player for the school’s men’s basketball team, the Mavericks.

In the time Francis has been on the team, there have been no issues “off the floor,” said Mavericks Head Coach Brett Weiberg.

“He has been wonderful,” Weiberg said.

Francis’ transfer to Northern Oklahoma didn’t go without inspection, as Weiberg said he took into consideration the charges filed against Francis when signing him to the team in late July or early August.

At the time, all the information Weiberg gathered suggested that the case was still in the “he said/she said” stage.

Weiberg gathered as much information as possible and discerned that at the time it was worth giving “the young man a second chance,” he said.

Francis would take a leave from the team if he ever needed to return to Rock Hill during the season and fulfill “his legal obligations,” Weiberg said.

Depending on what ramifications developed as a result of a trial, the Mavericks would weigh a decision on Francis’ future with the team.

Dreher, who was a sophomore business management major at the time of the assault, transferred to Marshall College in Huntington, W.Va. 

His name is not listed on the men’s basketball team’s roster.

Details

On Apr. 17,  a former Winthrop student visiting a friend reported she had been sexually assaulted multiple times in Dreher and Francis’ Courtyard apartment, according to the official police report.

The victim, 19-years-old at the time of the assault, told police she went to the athletes’ apartment with a friend, where she became involved in heated arguments with several people at the apartment, many of them revolving around Dreher’s repeated sexual advances toward her, the report says.

The victim was kicked out of the apartment, but was invited back in by a witness to the crime, the report says.

Once she was let back in, the victim said Dreher continued making sexual advances toward her but she repeatedly said “no,” according to the report. 

Eventually, Dreher grabbed the victim by the arms, pushed her into Francis’ bedroom with Francis following suit and proceeded to sexually assault her, the report said.

The victim was restrained while both Dreher and Francis took turns engaging in non-consensual sexual activities with the victim, according to the report.

According to the report, the same witness who allowed the victim back into the apartment went to the doorway of Francis’ room and observed the assault occurring, but he did not get involved.

Once the assault ended, the victim gathered her clothes and left the apartment, the report says. 

She went to Richardson Hall, where she met with another friend and claimed “three guys had raped her,” according to the report.

The student then called Campus Police, the report says.

When officers arrived at the scene, they noted that the victim was acting angrily and lashing out at her friends. Officers proceeded to ask the victim about her assault, but the victim claimed that her friends and officers were also victimizing her, according to the report.

The victim became angry with police and declared that she would leave the university immediately without answering any further questions, the report says.

A day later  on Apr. 18, a supervisor from the Greenville Memorial Hospital Emergency Room called the Winthrop Police Department, notifying them that the victim had come to their facility for care and reported that she was sexually assaulted at Winthrop, according to the report.

An investigation by Winthrop police soon ensued.

Denial

On Apr. 21, Campus Police called Dreher and Francis in to give statements regarding the incident, the report says.

Dreher admitted to being “intimate” with the victim, but said it was consensual, the report says.

Francis claimed that he was never intimate with the victim, that she had been drunk and that she planned on setting the basketball team up by removing her clothes when entering his apartment, the report says.

The witness who watched the incident occur corroborated the victim’s accusations, saying that Francis and Dreher indeed did assault her, during which she repeatedly said “no,” the report says.

Later the same day, Francis returned to the police station, where he said he was “nervous” during the first interview, the report says.

He then said he attempted to perform oral sex on the victim while Dreher engaged in sexual intercourse with her, the report says.

The police report specifies that both Dreher and Francis engaged in intercourse with the victim.

On Apr. 27, both Francis and Dreher turned themselves in at the Winthrop Police Department and were placed under arrest. After their arrest, both men were suspended indefinitely from the basketball team.

In June, a story by The [Rock Hill] Herald suggested that both Francis and Dreher were likely to leave the basketball program.

Dreher had already voluntarily signed a release form to terminate his scholarship while men’s basketball coach Randy Peele told The Herald that Francis was beginning to explore options, including looking at relocating to a junior college or prep school. 

What’s next?

Winthrop’s judicial council didn’t hold the case’s hearing until August, giving the university enough time to prepare a case after the investigation and ensure that witnesses and juidcial council members could be present, said Bethany Marlowe, dean of students.

No university charges were determined because Winthrop police completed their investigation by the time classes were out in May, Marlowe said. 

As of now, the entire judicial process is complete, but criminal charges are still pending in court, Marlowe said.

No court dates have been set for Francis or Dreher, said Erin Joyner, assistant solicitor with the York County Solicitor’s Office.

South Carolina law says that the venue of the crime determines where the trial will take place, Joyner said, indicating that court proceedings would take place in York County.

The solicitor’s office is “limited in what we can say” about the incident and possible court proceedings, Joyner said.