Damien Shanklin named in LSU rape investigation opened by Baton Rouge DA
East Baton Rouge's DA opened a criminal probe into an alleged sexual assault involving LSU football player Damien Shanklin, tied to a reported October 2025 campus incident.
What the DA confirmed
The East Baton Rouge District Attorney's Office has opened a criminal investigation into an alleged sexual assault connected to Louisiana State University. ESPN reported that police are investigating a rape allegation against LSU football player Damien Shanklin. The case involves two LSU students, and investigators believe the alleged incident may have happened on campus in October 2025.
The DA's office said it is working with LSU Police, Baton Rouge Police and other agencies to gather evidence and information before the investigation moves forward. In a brief statement, the office said it would have 'no further comment at this time,' citing the integrity of the investigation and the rights of everyone involved. The office did not name anyone in its statement.
Neither ESPN's report nor the DA's statement includes any comment from LSU or from Shanklin himself.
A year between the incident and the headline
The timeline here matters. The alleged incident is tied to October 2025, which means close to a year passed before the public learned the DA's office had opened a case. The DA's office has not released details on what happened, who first reported it, or when LSU or local police were notified.
What is public is limited to the DA's own statement and the account of one of the students involved. Everything beyond that, including any charges, is still under investigation.
The DA's office frames this as early-stage. Nothing in its statement states a charge has been filed, and nothing states one won't be. The investigation is simply open, with agencies still gathering evidence.
A student's public complaint
One of the students connected to the case already spoke publicly, before the DA's office confirmed a formal investigation. She posted on social media about how LSU handled her original report, questioning whether the school 'really protect[s] their athletes, especially their football players.'
That post is part of why this story moved beyond campus. It raised the question of whether a football program looked out for a player over a student who says she reported an assault, a question the DA's office is now the one left to answer.
The exact university response to her original report isn't detailed in the DA's statement either. What's on record is her own account that she questioned the school's commitment to protecting students over protecting athletes.
Why Shanklin's name is trending
Google Trends data shows search interest in Shanklin's name topping 2,000 queries in the United States, enough to put him among the day's bigger trending searches. That traffic lines up with ESPN's report naming him in connection with the police investigation.
This is a developing story. The DA's office has not set a timeline for when the investigation might wrap up, and it has said nothing beyond its initial statement. Nothing here is a finding of fact against anyone, just the start of a formal inquiry that Baton Rouge Police, LSU Police and the DA's office are still working through.
For now, the headline is simple. A Louisiana DA is investigating, two LSU students are involved, and the public record stops there until investigators or the university say more.
Facts per ESPN, ABC News - Breaking News, Latest News and Videos. Opinion is the taproom's.