Former NBA guard Ben McLemore found guilty of rape in Oregon trial

Former NBA guard Ben McLemore was found guilty of rape by an Oregon jury Thursday. 

The jury in Clackamas County found McLemore, the 32-year-old ex-Portland Trail Blazers player, guilty of raping a woman in 2021 after an 11-day trial.

McLemore, who pleaded not guilty to all counts, was found guilty on one charge of first-degree rape, one charge of first-degree unlawful sexual penetration and one count of second-degree sexual abuse. 

The jury also found him not guilty on an additional count of second-degree sexual abuse.

“We recognize there are those who fear individuals with celebrity status or a position of prominence can avoid prosecution. Not in Clackamas County,” Clackamas County District Attorney John Wentworth said in a statement, according to ESPN. 

“This case demonstrates my office prosecutes criminal acts regardless of the offender’s community status.”

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The incident occurred in Lake Oswego, Oregon, in October 2021, when McLemore was identified as a suspect by authorities after the woman’s complaint. 

In February 2024, a Clackamas County grand jury listened to evidence in the case, which included the woman’s testimony saying McLemore assaulted her. McLemore was arrested two months later by U.S. Marshals. 

During the trial, Scott Healy, a Clackamas County prosecutor, told the jury the woman passed out on a living room couch around 2 a.m. after drinking heavily. She regained partial consciousness the next morning, when McLemore sexually penetrated her with his fingers and then proceeded to have sex with her. 

McLemore’s team of attorneys disputed the claims, saying she initiated sexual contact and consented to it. The lawyers also claimed the woman was sober enough to consent to sexual contact. 

McLemore, a Kansas product, played nine seasons in the NBA, five with the Sacramento Kings, who took him seventh overall in the 2013 NBA Draft. 

He bounced around the league toward the end, playing for the Memphis Grizzlies, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers and, finally, the Portland Trail Blazers during the 2021-22 season.

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