Former NFL star Lawrence Taylor charged with third-degree rape

Pro Football Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor was arrested Thursday on rape and prostitution charges in an assault on a 16-year-old runaway who police said was brought to his suburban New York City hotel room against her will.

The formerNew York Giantslinebacker was arrested early Thursday at a Holiday Inn in Suffern, said Christopher St. Lawrence, supervisor of the town of Ramapo. The victim was 16, one year below the legal age of consent in New York, St. Lawrence said.

Ramapo Chief of Police Peter Brower said Taylor was cooperative when police woke him up around 4 a.m. Taylor was to be arraigned later Thursday on charges of third-degree rape and patronizing a prostitute.

Brower would not comment on whether Taylor knew the girl's age but added, "Ignorance is not an excuse to an individual's age."

An attorney for Taylor, Kenneth Gribetz, said, "We're confident his innocence will be proven."

Rasheed Davis, a 36-year-old parolee, was arrested in the case on charges of unlawful imprisonment, assault and endangering the welfare of a child.

Police said the girl was reported missing by her family in March and had been staying with Davis in the Bronx for a few weeks. Early Thursday morning, he beat her up, drove her to the hotel and told her she had to have sex with Taylor, police said. When she refused, Davis handed her over to Taylor, who sexually assaulted her, they said. Taylor paid her $300, which she gave to Davis, police said.

Davis "struck the young girl with his fist, kicked her and brought her to the Holiday Inn against her will," NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said.

On the way back from Suffern, the girl sent text messages to her uncle spelling out what had happened, Browne said. The uncle then went to the NYPD, he said.

Davis was sentenced in April 1994 to eight to 25 years in prison for first-degree manslaughter. He was paroled in March 2008.

There was no phone number listed at the address provided by police for Davis and it wasn't clear if he had an attorney. His relationship with the girl was unclear.

The Bronx district attorney's office refused to comment.

Police said no drugs were found in Taylor's hotel room on Thursday, but a bottle of alcohol was found.

A quick, fierce and athletic linebacker who redefined his position, Taylor anchored the Giants' defense and led New York to Super Bowls titles in 1987 and 1991. He was selected to the NFL's 75th Anniversary All-Time Team.

A 10-time Pro Bowler, he was the NFL Most Valuable Player in 1986 and the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1981, 1982 and 1986. He recorded 132 1/2 sacks, which doesn't included his 9 sacks in 1981 when the statistic wasn't official.

In 2001, Taylor was convicted of possessing drug paraphernalia in New Jersey. The conviction stemmed from the September 1998 discovery in a hotel room of a butane torch and other materials commonly used to smoke crack.

In 1996 and 1997, he was arrested in South Carolina and Florida on drug charges. In those cases, he either admitted his guilt or agreed to enter a pretrial intervention program.

In 2000, he drew five years of federal probation for filing false tax returns and for tax evasion.