Vanderbilt rape trial sentencing delayed again

The sentencing hearing of two former Vanderbilt University football players convicted of raping an unconscious woman in 2013 has again been pushed back.

Brandon Vandenburg and Cory Batey, both 21, will remain in jail until the rescheduled hearing on June 15. A sentencing set for late April was delayed to give attorneys time to review court transcripts, court officials said.

Attorneys are seeking the transcripts in part because of a possible challenge to whether one juror should have been allowed to serve in the case. Defense attorneys said they discovered the juror was a victim of sexual violence, but did not say so during jury selection. They question whether the man heard the case without bias.

A 12-person jury found Vandenburg and Batey guilty on Jan. 27 after hearing about two weeks of trial testimony. The men could face decades in prison for their convictions on charges including aggravated rape and aggravated sexual battery.

Witnesses, including another former player who was in the room at the time of the rape, testified at trial that Vandenburg carried the woman into his dorm room where Batey and others began sexually assaulting her. Witnesses also said Vandenburg encouraged and coached the others in the assault.

The trial unfolded amid national attention on campus sexual assault, and victim advocates said it led to an increase in reporting of rape and other sexual assault crimes.

Vandenburg has unrelated case pending in his home state, California.

In early 2014, while he was awaiting trial in the rape case, Vandenburg was involved in an altercation at his younger brother's middle school. Vandenburg grabbed a security officer's sunglasses, leaving a small cut, when the officer said he would have to verify Vandenburg was on his brother's emergency contact list.

Vandenburg was charged with battery of a school employee, a misdemeanor.

Two other men who were in the Vanderbilt dorm room during the June 23, 2013 rape -- Brandon Banks, 21, and Jaborian "Tip" McKenzie, 20 -- are facing charges and awaiting trial. McKenzie testified in his former teammates' trial hoping he might get a better deal in his own case.

Reporter Andrew L. John of The (Palm Springs, Calif.) Desert Sun contributed to this report. Reach Stacey Barchenger at 615-726-8968 or on Twitter @sbarchenger.