The trial of Quintez Cephus — the former Badgers wide receiver suspended from the team after being charged with sexual assault — is scheduled to begin Monday with jury selection and opening statements.
Cephus, 20, was suspended indefinitely by the team in August after the District Attorney announced charges would be filed against him. He is charged with two counts of felony sexual assault stemming from an incident in April 2018, when two women accused him of assaulting them while they were drunk. If convicted on both counts, he could face up to 30 years in prison.
He has stringently denied any wrongdoing, and his lawyers sought to have one of the charges dismissed in September, claiming to have video evidence one of the women was sober enough to walk without stumbling. The judge refused to dismiss the charge as the video did not prove anything conclusively.
His lawyers have also cast doubt on the contents of the criminal complaint against him, calling it a “slanted, one-sided version of the events.”
Jury selection will begin Monday at 8:30 a.m., followed by the first day of the trial if time allows. The trial is scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m. every day this week at the Dane County Courthouse.
