Since the charges against him were dismissed, Jeffrey Weaver is suing the College of William and Mary student who accused him of rape in October for more than $6 million in damages.
Weaver filed suit March 13 in a complaint condemning the female student’s allegedly “deceitful and malicious actions.” He requested a jury trial and moved for judgment for $5 million in compensatory damages and $350,000 in punitive damages for each count of defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress and malicious prosecution.
According to the complaint, the female student’s claim has affected Weaver, a 27-year-old who enrolled at the College after serving in the Iraq War, “to the extent that he has become depressed, withdrawn, and harmed such that his hair has literally fallen out in places.”
The complaint lists 17 different stories on websites and in news publications — including The Flat Hat — that detailed the rape charge and its aftermath. Many used his name.
The female student declined to comment.
Weaver and the female student met at the College Delly on the night of Oct. 14, according to testimony provided by both parties. The female student invited Weaver to her on-campus apartment, where they engaged in consensual kissing.
Weaver’s complaint asserts that he and the female student engaged in consensual intercourse. It alleges that he complied when the female student asked him to stop after 10 minutes, agreed to leave when she asked him to, and gave his phone number to her, which she entered into her phone.
According to the female student’s testimony, when she asked Weaver to leave after 10 minutes, he refused and allegedly raped her.
The female student reported the alleged rape Oct. 15 to a nurse and a William and Mary Police officer at Riverside Hospital. Weaver was arrested Oct. 17 and jailed until his bond was posted a few weeks later on Dec. 22.
The assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney for the City of Williamsburg dismissed nolle prosequi the charges against Weaver.
The legal term “nolle prosequi” means that the attorney decided not to proceed with the prosecution. It can indicate that the evidence demonstrated a flaw in the prosecution’s claim, that the charges cannot be proven, or that the prosecutor doubts that the accused is guilty.
Weaver’s complaint accuses the female student of providing false testimony in order to have him prosecuted in court and expelled from the College. The document cites several instances when the female student sought to change details in her testimony, including information about who provided the condom used during the sexual intercourse.
According to Weaver’s complaint, the female student asked that Weaver use a condom, then reached into a drawer to retrieve one and gave it to him.
When the female student reported the incident to the nurse on Oct. 15, she said that Weaver retrieved the condom from his wallet. A few days later, she contacted the William and Mary Police to say that she had provided the condom.
The complaint also alleges that she gave her friends differing accounts.
“She reported to several friends that she told Plaintiff ‘no’ before they engaged in sexual intercourse. Yet, according to witness statements, she told a friend … that, ‘at first, I kinda [sic] of said yes’ and then they were having sex and she changed her mind and said ‘no’,” reads the complaint.
It also states that Weaver submitted to and passed a polygraph “administrated by one of the most respected licensed polygraphers in the state” shortly after being formally charged.
Following the decision to not prosecute, the school placed Weaver on suspension. It’s not clear whether or not he will be allowed back. Weaver must reapply to the College to enroll as a student. The administration declined to comment.
“We go with the facts we have and we go to the CA [Commonwealth Attorney] office and they determine if there’s a case or not,” William and Mary Police Chief Don Challis said. “In these situations, it’s unfortunate, no one’s ever happy with the outcome.”
Challis had no public comment about the details of the case.
Kenneth Yoffy, one of Weaver’s attorneys, said that Weaver’s legal team intends to serve the female student within the next 30 days to commence the lawsuit, after which she will have 21 days to respond.
Flat Hat Sports Editor Jared Foretek also contributed to this report.