Brian Banks (born July 24, 1985) is a former American football linebacker. He signed with the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) on April 3, 2013. Banks previously signed as an undrafted free agent with the Las Vegas Locomotives of the United Football League in 2012.
Banks was a standout high school football star at Polytechnic High School (Poly) in Long Beach, California. In 2002, his Junior year, Banks verbally committed to USC. After being falsely accused of rape by a classmate, he spent more than five years in prison and five years on strict custody parole, but had his conviction overturned in 2012 after his accuser admitted she had fabricated the entire story. Following his exoneration, Banks sought to resume his football career, playing for the now defunct United Football League (UFL), attending mini-camps for several NFL teams, and later signing with the Atlanta Falcons.
Video Brian Banks (American football)
High school career
A native of Long Beach, California, Banks attended Long Beach Polytechnic High School, where he was teammates with DeSean Jackson, Darnell Bing, Winston Justice, and Marcedes Lewis. He was named one of Rivals.com's "Juniors to Watch" of the class of 2003, before being expelled from school due to the false rape accusations.
Maps Brian Banks (American football)
Professional career
In the summer of 2012, Banks received tryouts with several NFL teams, including the Kansas City Chiefs, San Diego Chargers, and San Francisco 49ers. He attended minicamp with the Seattle Seahawks, whose head coach, Pete Carroll, was the one who had offered Banks a scholarship in 2002 when he was the head coach at USC.
Las Vegas Locomotives
Banks signed with the Las Vegas Locomotives of the UFL on September 20, 2012, appearing in two games and making one tackle before the UFL suspended its season in October.
Atlanta Falcons
Banks signed with the Falcons on April 3, 2013, participating in Falcons offseason workouts, OTA's, and training camp. Banks made his NFL debut in a preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals, where he picked up two tackles. He played four games with the Falcons before being released on August 30, 2013.
National Football League (NFL)
In 2014, Banks was asked by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to speak at the 2014 NFL draft Rookie Symposium. Banks accepted and his speech was well received. A few weeks later, he was hired to join the NFL Department of Operations.
False accusation of sexual assault
In the summer of 2002, Banks was arrested and charged after classmate Wanetta Gibson falsely accused him of dragging her into a stairway at Polytechnic High School (Poly) and raping her. Faced with a possible 41 years to life sentence, he accepted a plea deal that included five years in prison, five years of probation, and registering as a sex offender. Wanetta Gibson and her mother Wanda Rhodes sued the Long Beach Unified School District, claiming the Poly campus was not a safe environment, and won a $1.5 million settlement. According to Banks, his lawyer told him that he stood no chance at trial because he would be tried by an all-white jury who would automatically assume that he was guilty because he was "a big, black teenager."
Confession of false accusation
In March 2011, Gibson contacted Banks on Facebook, met with him, and admitted in the presence of an attorney that she had fabricated the story. Banks secretly recorded Gibson's confession, but she later refused to tell prosecutors that she had lied so she wouldn't have to return the money she and her family had won in court.
California Innocence Project
Prior to the taped confession, Banks had asked for help from the California Innocence Project (CIP), a nonprofit law school clinic that investigates and litigates cases of factual innocence, but at that time there had not been sufficient evidence of Banks' innocence for them to take on the case. However, after the confession, CIP decided to make this the organization's first case involving a wrongfully convicted person who had already been released from prison.
The video evidence was not admissible in court, because the video had been made without Gibson's knowledge or consent and was not accompanied by a signed confession from the young woman. However, CIP was instrumental in putting together additional evidence supporting Banks' story, which led the district attorney to dismiss all charges against him on May 24, 2012. He was also released from sex-offender status, allowing him to resume his aborted sports career.
Banks supports CIP in its efforts on behalf of the wrongly-convicted, including participating in CIP's 2013 Innocence March. He often wears a shirt with the lettering "XONR8" ("exonerate").
School lawsuit
On April 12, 2013, the Long Beach Unified School District announced it was suing Wanetta Gibson for $2 million in an effort to recoup the $1.5 million she received, along with attorney's fees and punitive damages. On June 14, 2013, the school district won a $2.6 million judgment against Gibson, which includes the $750,000 settlement initially paid to her along with attorney's fees, interest, and $1 million in punitive damages.
Film project
A feature film project based on Banks' story, co-executive produced by Banks himself and Justin Brooks of CIP, is currently filming. It is directed by Tom Shadyac, the creator of such films as Bruce Almighty and Evan Almighty, and features Aldis Hodge as Brian Banks, Greg Kinnear as Brooks and Tiffany Dupont as CIP attorney Alissa Bjerkhoel. The movie is to be released sometime in 2018.
See also
- List of wrongful convictions in the United States
References
External links
- Atlanta Falcons bio
- Las Vegas Locomotives bio
- Just Sports Stats
- Farrar, Doug (September 20, 2012). "Brian Banks takes his next step with the UFL". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved August 9, 2013.
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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