A Former Pro Football Player Was Found Guilty Of A Heinous Act And Will Be Spending A Significant Amount Of Time In Jail.

Kendrick Starling is a 1999 graduate of Marshall High School who played football and ran track. He went onto play football at Navarro College before transferring to Marshall University before transferring again to San Jose State University.

Starling was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Texans in 2004.

He played in 8 games his rookie season mainly on special teams. After his rookie season, his pro football career didn't last long. After spending time on practice squads in Seattle and New Orleans in 2005, he was picked up again by the Texans and sent to play in Europe before being cut by the team again that same year. In 2007 he signed with the Canadian Football League's Edmonton Eskimos.

Starling was arrested in February 2021 after surrendering himself to the Marshall Police Department.

The then 42-year-old Starling had a warrant out for his arrest for the offense, a first-degree felony, for sexual abuse of a person younger than 14 at the time. When he surrendered to police he was then charged with continuous child sexual abuse and was held on a $100,000 bond.

The trial began on Dec. 15 and concluded with sentencing on Monday (Dec. 19)

The jury was told by Harrison County Assistant District Attorney Taylor Prior that the underage victim was repeatedly sexually assaulted from 2017 until early 2021. According to the Longview News-Journal, jurors found Starling guilty and sentenced him to 25 years in prison.