Four women testified against Kellen Winslow II in court Wednesday. NBC 7’s Rory Devine reports from downtown.
Several alleged sex crime victims of former NFL player Kellen Winslow, Jr. had trouble identifying their attacker during testimony in Wednesday's pretrial hearing.
Winslow is accused of raping or attempting to rape at least four women over the age of 50 over a three-month span of time, according to court documents.
Winslow, 34, was first arrested on June 7 after a report of a possible burglary in Park Encinitas, a senior community located on North El Camino Real, east of Interstate 5 and north of Encinitas Boulevard.
At the time, he faced first-degree burglary charges.
He was later accused of sexual assault, kidnapping and sodomy in connection with incidents dating back to March 17, according to the complaint.
Court documents revealed Winslow had entered the senior community on June 7. Prosecutors say Winslow intended to rape an 86-year-old woman who was sleeping inside her home.
The complaint alleges Winslow also raped a 54-year-old woman (Jane Doe 1) and a 59-year-old woman on March 17 and May 13, respectively, in his SUV.
Jane Doe 1 testified Wednesday she was hitchhiking in Encinitas on March 17 when a man in an SUV stopped to pick her up. She needed a ride to Vulcan Street in Encinitas and got in.
She says at first the driver was friendly, but then his attitude changed.
"He goes, 'I'm not going to give you a ride to Vulcan Street, I don't want to go down to [Highway] 101," she recounted. She says the driver then threatened her sexually and said if she spoke to police he'd kill her.
"I was stunned," she said.
Local
Jane Doe 1 said they drove to a Vons parking lot in Encinitas where the driver threatened her once again. They both got out of the SUV to get closer to the freeway. That's where the driver told her he was going to sexually assault her, Jane Doe 1 said.
She said the man then jumped over a fence and she followed. When prosecutors asked her why she would follow him she couldn't explain it
"I don't know. I thought he was going to shoot me or something," she said. "I don't know. I can't even tell you that. I can't tell you why I didn't run or didn't scream. I was that scared."
She also testified that when the man threatened her she told him to "Bring it on."
When Winslow's attorney asked why she would say that to someone who was threatening her she said that if she was going to be forced to have sex and not be killed then she just wanted to "get it over with."
Jane Doe 1 was also asked by prosecutors if the man who assaulted her was in the courtroom, and she pointed out Winslow's attorney.
Though a San Diego County Sherrif's Department (SDSO) detective described Jane Doe 1 as a transient with a mental illness, she did not identify herself Wednesday as homeless and said she lived with her parents.
Winslow is facing kidnapping and rape charges associated with Jane Doe 1, and Jane Doe 2 who is expected to testify Thursday.
The DA's office said Winslow had attempted to rape a 71-year-old woman (Jane Doe 4) and burglarized her property on June 1 and had indecently exposed himself to Jane Doe 3 in public on May 24.
Jane Doe 4 testified that her attacker entered her mobile home laundry room through a back door but said she did not see that man in court Wednesday. She also said she did not feel threatened by the man she encountered in her laundry room.
Jane Doe 3 said she never really looked at the man who she said exposed himself to her while she was gardening.
Even an SDSO detective had trouble identifying Winslow as the man he arrested on June 14. He at first said he did not see the man in the courtroom and then positively identified him moments later. The detective acknowledged that Winslow looked different in court Wednesday compared to his first appearance in June.
At his arraignment on June 15, Winslow had a beard, no glasses and was cuffed wearing a jail jumpsuit. On Wednesday he was clean shaven in a suit and tie with dark-framed glasses.
Testimony is expected to finish Thursday and then the judge will determine if there is enough evidence to bound Winslow over for trial.
Winslow pleaded not guilty and is being held without bail based on "clear and convincing" evidence he poses a threat to the community and is considered a flight risk.
If convicted on all counts, he could be sentenced to life in prison. His next court date is scheduled for June 25.
Defense attorney Harvey A. Steinberg said Winslow looks forward to being vindicated.
Winslow, the son of former San Diego Chargers great Kellen Winslow Sr., grew up in San Diego and graduated from Scripps Ranch High School before playing his college football at the University of Miami.
His NFL career started with the Cleveland Browns in 2004 and included stints with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Seattle Seahawks, New England Patriots and New York Jets.
