SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. — Dana Stubblefield, a one-time Super Bowl champion and NFL All-Pro selection, was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison for raping a mentally delayed woman while using a gun in Northern California in 2015.
The sentence was handed down to Stubblefield on Thursday, TMZ Sports reported.
Stubblefied, 49, was convicted in July of rape by force, oral copulation by force and false imprisonment.
The woman, who was then 31, traveled to Stubblefield’s home on April 9, 2015, to interview for a job babysitting his children. Investigators say she left after 20 minutes, but she returned when Stubblefield texted her that he wanted to pay for her time, KADN reported.
After raping her, investigators said, Stubblefield gave her $80 and let her go. Immediately following the crime, the victim went to the Morgan Hill Police Department and reported the rape, prosecutors said.
His attorneys had denied the woman suffered from any disability that prevented her from agreeing to consensual sex.
Allen Sawyer, Stubblefield’s attorney, told TMZ Sports, his client planned to appeal the decision.
“We’re very confident that if the jury had the correct information, they would have (come) to a different conclusion,” Sawyer said. “I’ve never had a case that so much evidence has been excluded. We wanted the truth to come out and we’re going to keep fighting.”
Sawyer said Stubblefield “knows he’s innocent and he’s confident the system is going to get it right and he’s gonna be patient.”
The former defensive lineman played 11 seasons for the San Francisco 49ers, Washington Redskins and Oakland Raiders. In 1993 he was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year with 10.5 sacks, and in 1997 he was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year by The Associated Press after he recorded 15 sacks.
Stubblefield was drafted 26th overall in the first round, and he played in the Pro Bowl in 1994 and in 1995. His final season was with the Raiders in 2003.
