After it was believed that a grand jury would begin reviewing the investigation into Chicago Blackhawks star Patrick Kane this week, the Buffalo News is reporting that the grand jury investigation has been postponed.
The Buffalo News is also reporting that it is believed the postponement comes amid the possibility of ongoing settlement talks between attorneys for Kane and the alleged victim.
UPDATE: Scott Levin of WGRZ reports that the case was postponed by the Erie County District Attorney and that there have been no settlement talks as of yet.
Source: D.A postponed #patrickkane Grand Jury for a few weeks Also NO settlement talks as of today between attorneys on either side @wgrz
— Scott Levin (@ScottLevinWGRZ) September 8, 2015
Kane, who has not been charged with a crime, has reportedly been under investigation for the last month following allegations that he raped a woman in his home on the morning of Aug. 2. Local authorities have been tight-lipped about the case from the very beginning, admitting only that they were investigating an alleged incident that occurred at Kane’s home and that they were awaiting forensic testing results.
According to the News, individuals tied to the case were summoned to appear before the grand jury Tuesday.
Neither the Chicago Blackhawks nor the NHL has said much publicly about the ongoing investigation and neither entity is believed to have taken any disciplinary action against Kane at this time.
If a settlement becomes a possibility, it would likely allow Kane to avoid any criminal charges, but only further shrouds what may or may not have happened on Aug. 2. A lack of criminal charges also would make it difficult for the league or the team to take further disciplinary action, if they saw fit.
However, if a settlement is not reached, it would appear that the grand jury proceedings would be back on at a later date and Kane's status remains in question.
There’s still a lot of uncertainty in this ongoing situation. We'll have more updates as they become available.
