Former Illini basketball star Terrence Shannon Jr. to face trial in rape case

A Kansas judge has ruled that former University of Illinois basketball star Terrence Shannon Jr. must stand trial on a rape charge after a woman testified Friday that she was “terrified” as she allegedly was being assaulted.

Shannon, 23, appeared before Judge Sally Pokorny in Douglas County District Court in Kansas on Friday for a preliminary hearing. The Chicago native is charged with one count of rape or an alternative count of aggravated sexual battery, which is a felony, according to a criminal complaint.

A jury trial is scheduled to begin June 10 in Kansas, according to court officials.

An attorney representing Shannon said he pleaded not guilty to the charges.

“Our legal team is neither shocked nor disappointed by the outcome of this event,” Shannon’s attorney Mark Sutter, of Sutter Law Group in Oakbrook Terrace, said in a statement. “A preliminary hearing is a procedural process that merely speaks to the threshold of evidence and whether a question of fact may exist for a jury.  It has nothing to do with guilt or innocence. Those issues will be decided at trial, and we continue to look forward to our day in court.”

The charges stem from a September trip that Shannon took to Lawrence, Kansas, to watch an Illinois football game against the University of Kansas.

Lawrence police said in an affidavit that a woman, who was born in 2005, told a detective that Shannon put his hand under her skirt, grabbed her buttocks and penetrated her with his finger at a crowded bar close to campus.

At Friday’s hearing, a woman testified that she was “terrified” as she was allegedly assaulted by Shannon; Shannon also testified, denying that he had ever touched the woman during the incident, according to a story in the Lawrence Journal-World.

In December, Shannon was charged with one count of rape or an alternative count of misdemeanor sexual battery. He turned himself in to authorities in Lawrence and was released on a $50,000 bond.

One of the charges against Shannon was recently elevated, according to an amended complaint filed earlier this week; while the rape charge remains, the alternative charge was changed to aggravated sexual battery, which is a felony.

“As set out during the preliminary hearing, the State believes there is sufficient evidence to support this alternative charge,” said a public information officer for the Douglas County district attorney’s office.

The Illini guard was initially suspended from “all team activities” by the U. of I. and missed six games, but the decision was reversed by a federal judge, who issued a temporary restraining order.

University officials in April closed a student misconduct investigation of Shannon, citing insufficient evidence to determine whether he violated the school’s student code.

Shannon went on to finish the 2023-24 season. He led the Illini to the Big Ten Tournament championship and was voted Most Outstanding Player. The fifth-year student helped the Illini reach the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament before losing to Connecticut, the eventual champion.

The Associated Press contributed.

eleventis@chicagotribune.com