Bond lowered for ex-Bengal Nate Webster

Jailed former Cincinnati Bengal Nathaniel “Nate” Webster had his bond lowered Thursday, a move that could allow him to be freed until his Dec. 12 trial.

Webster, 33, of Symmes Township, was arrested July 21 and charged with sexual battery, gross sexual imposition and five counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor.

He is accused of having a sexual relationship with a girl when she was age 15. His bond initially was set at $1 million by Hamilton County Common Pleas Court Judge Ralph “Ted” Winkler, who refused to lower it in a September hearing.

But Webster’s attorney appealed that to the Cincinnati-based 1st District Court of Appeals which ruled Thursday that Webster’s new bond will be $500,000.

If he makes that bond and is released from the Hamilton County Justice Center where he has been since his arrest, the appellate court ruled, Webster must wear an electronic ankle monitor, can have no contact with his accuser or her family and can’t live within two miles of them.

He also must surrender his driver’s license and passport and cannot possess guns. One of the allegations against Webster is that he often had sex with the girl when guns were nearby, possibly to intimidate her into silence.

The charges against Webster carry a maximum sentence of 25½ years in prison.
As of 4 p.m. today, Webster still was in jail.


(cincinnatti.com)

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