Lawrence Taylor Charged with Third-Degree Rape of 16-Year-Old Girl

SUFFERN, N.Y. (CBS/AP) Lawrence Taylor has been formally charged with third-degree rape and patronizing a prostitute in an assault on a 16-year-old girl in a New York City suburb.

Police say the 16-year-old runaway was brought to the Pro Football Hall of Famer's suburban New York City hotel room against her will.

Taylor, a former New York Giants linebacker, was arrested early Thursday at a Holiday Inn in Suffern, N.Y. Police say the 16-year-old victim was one year below the legal age of consent in New York.

An attorney for Taylor, Kenneth Gribetz, says he is confident Taylor will be proven innocent.

Ramapo Chief of Police Peter Brower says Taylor paid the girl $300. He wouldn't comment on whether Taylor knew how young she was, but he said, "Ignorance is not an excuse to an individual's age." 

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