felony

Brigham Young receiver Parker Kingston has been charged with first-degree felony rape by prosecutors in Utah.

The Washington County Attorney’s Office announced the charges on Wednesday, almost a year after a 20-year-old woman told officers at St. George Regional Hospital that Kingston had sexually assaulted her on Feb. 23, 2025.

The St. George Police Department gathered digital and forensic evidence and interviewed the involved parties and other witnesses before turning the information over to the Washington County Attorney’s Office for review.

Kingston, 21, is being held without bail and is scheduled to appear in Utah’s Fifth Judicial District Court on Friday afternoon.

Kingston has been with the Cougars for four years and has one season of college eligibility remaining. In a breakout 2025 season, he had 67 receptions for 928 yards and five touchdowns with 119 yards and three touchdowns rushing. Over the past two seasons, Kingston has also returned three punts for touchdowns.

“BYU became aware today of the arrest of Parker Kingston,” the school said Wednesday in a statement. “The university takes any allegation very seriously, and will cooperate with law enforcement. Due to federal and university privacy laws and practices for students, the university will not be able to provide additional comment.”

Last year, then-BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff was accused in a civil lawsuit of raping a woman in November 2023. Retzlaff contended that the sex was consensual, and the parties agreed to dismiss the case with prejudice in June. Facing suspension for violating a BYU honor code that requires students to abstain from premarital sex, Retzlaff transferred to Tulane.

Penn State hockey star Gavin McKenna will not face a felony assault charge after allegedly striking another man in the face twice during an altercation last weekend.

A criminal complaint filed Wednesday by the State College Police Department charged McKenna with first-degree felony aggravated assault — which in Pennsylvania is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and $25,000 in fines — as well as misdemeanor simple assault, summary harassment and summary disorderly conduct.

The District’s Attorney’s Office of Centre County, Pa., said Friday that it is withdrawing the felony assault charge against the 18-year-old Canadian, who is expected to be one of the top picks in this year’s NHL draft,

“In order to establish probable cause for the crime of Aggravated Assault, the Commonwealth must establish that a person acted with the intent to cause serious bodily injury or acted recklessly under circumstances showing an extreme indifference to the value of human life,” the DA’s office said in a news release.

“Both the District Attorney’s Office and the State College Police Department have reviewed video evidence of this incident and do not believe that a charge of Aggravated Assault is supported by the evidence.”

The office added that “prosecution will go forward with the misdemeanor Simple Assault and other summary charges as they relate to the serious injuries suffered by the victim.”

The alleged incident took place around 8:45 p.m. Saturday near the Penn State campus, hours after McKenna had a goal and two assists during the Nittany Lions’ 5-4 overtime loss to Michigan State in an outdoor game played at Beaver Stadium.

“The complaint alleges that the victim was punched twice on the right side of his face by the defendant following an exchange of words between the alleged victim’s group and the group of people with Gavin McKenna,” prosecutors wrote. “The complaint further alleges that the victim sustained fractures to both sides of his jaw which would require surgery and that he was missing a tooth.

“Follow-up by State College Police has confirmed that the victim suffered two fractures to one side of his jaw, as opposed to both sides of his jaw, and that he is not missing a tooth. The victim has had surgery and is recovering.”

A college hockey star expected to be one of the top picks in this year’s NHL draft has been charged with felony assault after allegedly striking another man in the face during an altercation last weekend in State College, Pa.

Penn State freshman Gavin McKenna, 18, was arraigned Wednesday and released on $20,000 unsecured bail, according to the State College Police Department.

He is charged with first-degree felony aggravated assault — which in Pennsylvania is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and $25,000 in fines — as well as simple assault, harassment and disorderly conduct.

His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Feb. 11.

According to police, the incident occurred around 8:45 p.m. Saturday near the Penn State campus. The man allegedly struck by McKenna suffered facial injuries that required corrective surgery, police said.

Earlier that day, McKenna had a goal and two assists during the Nittany Lions’ 5-4 overtime loss to Michigan State in an outdoor game played in front of 74,575 fans at Beaver Stadium, home of the Penn State football team.

McKenna is tied for the team lead with 32 points this season. He has 11 goals and a team-high 21 assists. His availability for the Nittany Lions’ next game, Feb. 13 at Michigan, is unclear.

“We are aware that charges have been filed; however, as this is an ongoing legal matter, we will not have any further comment,” Penn State said in a statement emailed to The Times on Thursday morning.

A native of Whitehorse, Yukon, McKenna had four goals and 10 assists to help Canada win the bronze medal at the 2026 World Junior Championships, played from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 in Minnesota. He is listed as the No. 1 North American skater on NHL.com’s midseason draft prospect rankings and is said to be making around $700,000 in an NIL deal this season at Penn State.