Former NFL star tight end Kellen Winslow II, who was once the highest-paid player at his position, was sentenced Wednesday to 14 years in state prison for committing sexual offenses, including rape and assault, against five women in California across nearly two decades.
Winslow was convicted of forcible rape, rape of an unconscious person, assault with intent to commit rape, indecent exposure and lewd conduct in public as part of a plea deal he agreed to last month. The 14-year sentence was the maximum allowed under the plea deal.
The son of former San Diego Chargers legend Kellen Winslow, Winslow II was referred to as “a sexual predator” by San Diego County Superior Court Judge Blaine Bowman. “That leaves us with someone who can only be described in two words — and that is a sexual predator,” Bowman said before sentencing Winslow. “That’s what Kellen Winslow II is. He’s a sexual predator. He preys on vulnerable victims and is very brazen in the way he carries out his crimes.”
Among the 37-year-old’s five victims were a homeless woman he befriended then raped, a 54-year-old hitchhiker and a teen passed out at a party.
“Mr. Winslow, you carefully selected your victims, those that were most vulnerable,” the judge told Winslow II. “We had Jane Doe number 1 who was 54, Jane Doe number 2 who was homeless, age 59, Jane Doe number 3 was 57 and Jane Doe number 5 was 77 years old and she was alone in a jacuzzi in a gym,” the judge said. The vulnerability of the victims was no accident. “It was the type of victim that you sought out yourself because you felt that perhaps they wouldn’t report the crime or wouldn’t be deemed credible by the jurors.”
A one-time Pro Bowler, Winslow II played at the University of Miami and his NFL career included stints with Cleveland, Tampa Bay, New England and the New York Jets between 2004 and 2013.
“In the future, I do plan to tell my story,” he said at the sentencing. Upon his release from prison, Winslow II must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
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