Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger no longer faces prosecution over a claim of sexual assault in Georgia, but he does face the real possibility of punishment from the Steelers and/or the National Football League that includes a suspension.

Fred Bright, the district attorney of the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit in Georgia, announced this afternoon that he will not prosecute the case, but in doing so revealed some graphic details of what happened the night of March 4 and early morning hours of March 5 in a Milledgeville, Ga., nightclub. A 20-year-old woman claimed that Roethlisberger sexually assaulted her, although she later asked the DA not to pursue the case.

"We are not condoning Mr. Roethlisberger's actions that night,'' Bright said at a news conference. "But we do not prosecute morals, we prosecute crimes."

The NFL and the Steelers, however, can punish the quarterback based on the league's conduct policy and a team's possible claim to conduct detrimental to the ballclub. One of the possible issues is Bright's conclusion that Roethlisberger could have been cited for providing alcohol to a minor.

Multiple Steelers sources indicated today that Steelers President Art Rooney is considering various types of punishment for his quarterback that could include suspension from a game or games in 2010. It's also possible the NFL could take that decision out of Rooney's hands by issuing a suspension under the league's conduct policy.

Roethlisberger also is fighting a civil lawsuit that was filed against him last year claiming sexual assault in the state of Nevada.

Some of the raw details of Roethlisberger's escapade with the 20-year-old college student in Georgia last month might only strengthen the case against him by the league and/or the Steelers.

Bright stated that investigators' concluded that Roethlisberger "provided shots of alcohol" for the victim and her friends and that they were "highly intoxicated.'' Bright said it is a crime to provide alcohol to a person under 21 but that he would not pursue that misdemeanor against Roethlisberger because he would need the young woman to testify against him and she has asked for the entire case to be dropped.

Bright said that Roethlisberger had invited the young woman into the club's VIP room and later followed her into a small bathroom. While Bright provided some graphic details of some bruising and slight bleeding of the woman, he said that "significant questions about what had occurred persists."

He said he could not pursue the case because he did not believe he could prove it beyond a reasonable doubt.

The NFL and/or the Steelers, however, do not need such proof.

In a statement released by the Steelers this afternoon, president Art Rooney II said he had met with Mr. Roethlisberger "on a number of occasions, not only to discuss this incident, but also to discuss his commitment to make sure something like this never happens again.

"Ben will now have to work hard to earn back the respect and trust of Steelers fans, and to live up to the leadership responsibilities we all expect of him."

He said Mr. Roethlisberger will meet with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell "in the coming days ... to discuss his resolve to abide by the league's personal conduct standards. After consultation with the commissioner, our organization will determine the next steps in the process."

DA Bright said what others might want to tell Roethlisberger these days, including Rooney and Goodell. Bright said if it were his son, he would tell him to "grow up.''

"Come on, you're supposed to stand for something,'' Bright said.

"Grow up, cut it out, you don't need to be in the VIP area drinking alcohol . . . You don't need to put yourself in position of 'These ladies, come over the back and these shots are on me,' whatever . . .

"You need to be a role model for your team, your city, the NFL. You can do better."

Bright concluded that, "I hope that he's learned something from this, I really do."

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