Jameis Winston, Crab Legs, and Celebrity Privilege
Winston is in the news again with another off-the-field issue, this time for an incident in which Winston “forgot to pay” for $32 worth of crab legs he took from a Publix supermarket. He was suspended from the baseball team, and was then shortly reinstated, and it seems unlikely he will receive any punishment from the 2013 National Championship-winning FSU football team.
This is, of course, not the first time Winston has gotten himself into trouble. I’m not going to wade too deep into the rape allegations. I will say this: we will never know what happened in that apartment on December 7th, 2012. Unfortunately, one of the following two scenarios will be true for the rest of Winston’s career: either millions of football fans will be cheering for a rapist and his victim will never be served justice, or Winston will have to deal with millions of people incorrectly believing he is a rapist.
On top of these controversies, in 2012, Winston was questioned by police over his involvement in a BB gun fight that broke some windows around Doak Campbell stadium, and, also in 2012, a Burger King employee called the police and claimed Winston stole soda from the restaurant.
Any father or friend of a 20-year-old knows that, aside from the rape allegations, all of these incidents are typical of the shenanigans you would expect from a young man of that age. Winston’s actions have been immature, yes, but very few 20-year-olds act mature.
The difference is that the average 20-year-old has to face consequences for their actions. When most people are caught shoplifting, they are arrested. In Florida, they are charged with a second-degree misdemeanor that carries up to a $500 fine and 60 days in jail. This is how kids become adults: they deal with the consequences of their mistakes and eventually learn from them.
But Winston will not be fined and he will not be put in jail. He is the star of the football team in a town that prides itself on its football team, so strings can be pulled and eyes can be averted. Right now he is untouchable, but even if he goes on to have a successful NFL career, eventually his celebrity will fade.
And this is when it will hit the fan: without having developed into a mature adult, Winston will have to figure out how to live in a middle-aged body with the mind of a 20-year-old. There may be consequences, after all.
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