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Terrence Shannon Jr., the basketball star suspended by the University of Illinois as he faces a rape allegation in Kansas, could be returning to the court soon if an injunction filed by his attorney in Champaign County is granted.

‘All we want for our client is a fair process, and TJ has not received that yet,’ read a statement from attorneys Mark P. Sutter, Rob Lang, Steve Beckett, and Mark Goldenberg.

‘Respectfully, this was a rush to judgment by the University [of Illinois], and the protocol that they implemented to summarily suspend our client ignored the fundamentals of due process and the presumption of innocence. Our team remains hopeful that justice will ultimately be served.’

The school suspended Shannon from ‘all team activities, effective immediately,’ a day after the Douglas (Kansas) County District Attorney issued a warrant for his arrest.

Shannon and teammate Justin Harmon were allegedly driven to Lawrence, Kansas on September 8 by graduate assistant coach Dyshawn Hobson to watch their school’s football team play the Jayhawks before visiting a local bar. It was there, according to the complaint, that an 18- or 19-year-old woman claims Shannon approached before ultimately grabbing her butt and placing his hand under her skirt against her wishes.

‘[Affiant] stated once she got close to her, the male started ‘grabbing’ on her and ‘grabbing my butt’ to pull her towards him,’ read the complaint provided to DailyMail.com. ‘[Affiant] stated the male started grabbing her buttocks on the outside of her clothing before putting his hands under her skirt and grabbing her buttocks. [Affiant] stated he pulled her to him and nearly immediately placed his finger under her underwear and inserted it into her vagina.’

Shannon was eventually identified by the woman with the help of social media photos.

Hobson has testified on Shannon’s behalf, saying that he did not see any improper behavior from the Illini star.

‘I am familiar with the alleged charges against TJ, and I did not see any such thing occur, at all,’ Hobson told officers. ‘Nothing remotely close. And based on what I know about TJ, it would be completely out of character for him to ever do something like that.’

Prosecutors in Douglas County charged Shannon on December 5 with rape or an alternative count of sexual battery. The complaint says the accuser was born in 2005.

The rape charge carries a sentence of 12 to 54 years in prison, while the battery charge carries a fine of up to $2,500 and up to a year in jail.

Cheryl Cadue, public information officer for the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office, said the office was limited in what it could say about the case because it was pending. She directed questions to the sheriff’s office.

The probable cause affidavit has not been released.

The alleged incident happened when Shannon attended the Illini’s football game at Kansas on September 8. He was not part of the school’s traveling party.

Shannon traveled to Lawrence, Kansas, in December to turn himself in to authorities. He was released on a $50,000 bond, and the school said he was returning to Champaign. Sheriff’s office spokesman George Diepenbrock said his booking photo would not be released.

‘Since September, when these allegations surfaced, Terrence has cooperated with law enforcement throughout the investigation, declaring his innocence from the beginning,’ Sutter said in a statement.

‘Now, several months later, my office learned that formal charges were filed against him yesterday in Lawrence, KS. In less than 24 hours, my client responded, and he voluntarily surrendered to local authorities for processing and release. Terrence is innocent of these charges, and he intends to take his case to trial.’

Illinois said it has been aware since late September that police in Lawrence were investigating Shannon but had ‘yet to receive actionable information’ until Wednesday.

‘The University and DIA (Division of Intercollegiate Athletics) have shown time and again that we have zero tolerance for sexual misconduct,’ athletic director Josh Whitman said in a statement.

‘At the same time, DIA policy affords student-athletes appropriate levels of due process based on the nature and severity of the allegations. We will rely on that policy and our prior experiences to manage this situation appropriately for the University and the involved parties.’

The head of the prosecutor’s office, former University of Kansas law professor Suzanne Valdez, was elected in 2020 after the previous prosecutor charged one of her students with making a false rape report. The charge was eventually dropped amid intense pressure. Valdez said law enforcement in Lawrence failed to protect women.

In his second season at Illinois after three years at Texas Tech, Shannon is second in the Big Ten in scoring at 21.7 points per game. Only Purdue’s Zach Edey is averaging more.

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