Darren Sharper's open rape cases are starting to lead to plea deals in some states. Sharper, a former NFL star who was indicted on federal drug and rape charges last year, was facing life in prison for the alleged sexual assault of multiple women across four different states: Nevada, Arizona, Louisiana, and California. He's been jailed in L.A. since February 2014, his time stemming from his 2013 drug and rape charges in California.
In a new development, TMZ Sports reports that Sharper has reached a plea deal for his charges in Nevada. For sexually assaulting two women in Las Vegas, Sharper will serve a maximum of eight years in prison—far less than the possible life sentence he could have received. This plea is part of Sharper's larger legal plan to settle for deals in all of his drug and rape cases.
After initially pleading not guilty to his California state charges, Sharper will enter a change-of-plea this morning in L.A. Later this afternoon, he'll enter another new plea via a video conference call with Arizona law enforcement officials. He'll do the same with a Louisiana court later this month.
Once the pleas and sentencing procedures are finished in all states, Sharper will have an opportunity to serve his jail time concurrently. Stay tuned for further developments in Sharper's case.
UPDATE: Sharper's plea deal in Arizona is in.
BREAKING: Former NFL safety Darren Sharper pleads guilty to sex assault in Arizona; deal calls for 9 years
— AP NFL (@AP_NFL) March 23, 2015UPDATE: According to the New Orleans Advocate, Sharper will serve 20 years in prison for his Louisiana rape charges. As the longest of his plea deals, this one will matter the most, because the concurrent sentences allow Sharper to serve all of the jail time agreed to in one long swoop, as opposed to the sentences being stacked on top of each other.
Instead of 37 years (8 from Nevada, 9 from Arizona, 20 from Louisiana) in prison, he'll be behind bars for 20 years maximum. As part of his "global plea" though, Sharper's time in jail will likely be half of that minus time served. He'll be away for just nine years in federal prison.
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[via TMZ Sports]
