The sexual assault suit against Derrick Rose will go to trial after a judge denied the NBA star's request to throw out the case.
U.S. District Court Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald ruled this week that the civil case against the Knicks guard will move forward, saying the plaintiff has a compelling enough argument to be heard by a jury.
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Rose was sued last year in California by a woman who said he and two friends drugged and sexually assaulted her in August 2013. He has denied all allegations in the complaint and argued in a court filing last September that sex with the woman — who was in a relationship with him at the time — was consensual.
Fitzgerald wrote in his ruling: "The record presents a genuine dispute of material fact as to the central issue in this action: whether Plaintiff consented to sexual intercourse with Defendants in early morning of August 27, 2013. Because the jury and not the Court must resolve this central issue, summary judgment is improper."
Rose was traded from his hometown Bulls to the Knicks in June. His trial is currently scheduled to start Oct. 4 in Los Angeles — likely just days before the Knicks' preseason opener.
