California appeals court overturns ex-NFL star Dana Stubblefield’s rape conviction

(CNN) — A California appellate court has overturned the rape conviction of former San Francisco 49ers defensive tackle Dana Stubblefield – finding it “legally invalid” – on the grounds of racial bias.

On Thursday, the Santa Clara County Sixth District Court of Appeal vacated the former NFL star’s conviction and prison sentence, saying that the prosecution’s statements during the trial “constituted ‘racially discriminatory language about’ Stubblefield’s race” and violated the California Racial Justice Act of 2020, which makes it illegal to obtain a conviction “on the basis of race, ethnicity, or national origin.”

In 2020, Stubblefield was sentenced to 15 to years to life after a jury found him guilty of rape by force using a firearm, oral copulation by force and false imprisonment after prosecutors said he had lured an intellectually disabled woman to his home in April 2015 with the promise of a babysitting job.

During the trial, the prosecution had alleged that Stubblefield had threatened the woman with a handgun. In closing arguments, which were made eight weeks after George Floyd was murdered by then-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, a prosecutor said police had not searched Stubblefield’s house after the woman reported the incident, based partly on the fact that he was a famous Black man and doing so would have caused “a storm of controversy,” according to a court filing.

Following the conviction in 2020, Allen Sawyer, one of Stubblefield’s trial attorneys, told CNN he “firmly believe(d)” his client is innocent.

In its Thursday opinion overturning the conviction, the appeals court wrote: “The statement implied the house might have been searched and a gun found had Stubblefield not been Black, and that Stubblefield therefore gained an undeserved advantage at trial because he was a Black man.

“Second, the claim that a search would ‘open up a storm of controversy’ implicitly referenced the events that followed George Floyd’s then-recent killing, appealing to racially biased perceptions of those events and associating Stubblefield with them based on his race,” it added.

CNN has contacted the California Attorney General’s office for comment.

In a statement to CNN, Stubblefield’s lawyer, Joseph Doyle, said, “We’re all tremendously grateful for the court’s decision and for what this means for Mr. Stubblefield and his family. This reversal is a significant development for those facing potential racial bias in the legal system, and the court’s thorough and considered opinion demonstrates a commitment to addressing these complex issues. The opinion also sets a strong precedent for future cases.

“Unfortunately for Mr. Stubblefield, the racial undertones in the case were just one of many problems with his conviction. There was also a tremendous amount of evidence that was excluded at Mr. Stubblefield’s trial that would have fundamentally altered the prosecution’s narrative. But we look forward to righting those wrongs when we get back to the trial court.”

In an interview with the Bay Area News Group, Sawyer said Thursday, “We’re over the moon. We knew from the day we stepped out of this courtroom when the jury came back, that this was not over, that this would not stand.”

Sawyer also told the news outlet: “The context of this case was so unfair, layers upon layers, but we’re happy, and we can’t wait to get Dana out of custody. We expect that to happen soon.”

The Santa Clara County District Attorney will decide whether there will be a retrial, though there is no timeline for a decision. When reached by CNN for comment, the county District Attorney’s office said it was “studying the opinion.”

The now 54-year-old was a first-round draft pick in 1993 for the 49ers, where he spent a total of seven years in two spells either side of a three-year stint with the then-named Washington Redskins. He finished his career after spending one season with the Oakland Raiders in 2003, retiring due to an injury shortly after being signed by the New England Patriots in 2004.

He won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award in 1997, made three All-Pro and Pro Bowl teams, and he won a Super Bowl ring with the 49ers in Super Bowl XXIX.

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CNN’s Jill Martin contributed to reporting.