Former Jaguars linebacker Telvin Smith has pleaded not guilty to charges of unlawful sexual activity with certain minors, according to Duval County court records.

He has entered the plea in writing with his attorney and has a May 20 court date. If Smith is convicted, he will face up to 15 years in prison.

The former Jaguar was arrested and charged on April 29. Images published by Vic Micolucci of WJXT that afternoon showed that a SWAT team and undercover detectives had lined what appeared to be Smith’s house and served a search warrant.

According to ESPN’s Michael DiRocco, in the warrant it’s alleged that Smith had sex multiple times with a 17-year-old girl, both at his home and in his vehicle, last August and September.

Per the report, the survivor told Smith the day they first met she had recently turned 17.

In November, a heavy police presence was seen at Smith’s home, and a black Cadillac Escalade was towed away. Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office later revealed that a search warrant had been served at the home on Nov. 27, 2019, but no arrests were made. That investigation was ongoing, per Jacksonville’s First Coast News.

The arrest warrant on Smith also reportedly states that Smith offered the survivor $200 while driving her back to her car after their first alleged sexual encounter. Per the report, Smith told her not to tell anyone, fearing legal repercussions.

A VICTORIAN police officer is expected to be charged over the leaking of photos of former AFL player and coach Dean Laidley inside a police station.

Deputy Commissioner Shane Patton confirmed the male senior constable, from the southern metropolitan region, was suspended with pay on Monday.

He is expected to be charged with unauthorised access to police information.

The maximum penalty for the criminal charge is two years in prison or $40,000 in fines.

Mr Patton described the dissemination of the photos as “appalling”.

“It’s a breach of our values, it’s unlawful and criminal conduct and that’s the way we are treating it,” he told reporters.

Laidley was arrested on Saturday night outside a home in St Kilda and charged with stalking and other offences.

On Sunday, photos of the 53-year-old’s mug shot, as well as a photo of him in a long blonde wig and wearing a dress were disseminated on social media.

The latter photo appears to be taken from inside the police station looking into the interview room where Laidley was being questioned.

The photos subsequently appeared on the front page of the Herald Sun and The West Australian newspapers on Monday.

Mr Patton said six police officers were sent the photo by the senior constable via WhatsApp and could also face charges if it’s found they disseminated it further.

The police officer would also be subject to internal disciplinary measures and the corruption watchdog had been notified, he said.

Lawyers acting for Laidley, as well as civil liberties groups, have criticised the police officer’s actions.

“Outraged that pictures of my client, taken by some police officer, on the sly, when in custody in interview have hit the media. Typical #grossbreachofprivacy,” Laidley’s lawyer Dee Giannopoulo tweeted.

Another of his lawyers, Bill Doogue, also tweeted his anger.

“Disgraceful. Taking photos unlawfully and sharing them. And these were sneaky photos while in Police interview in Police Station by a Police Officer,” Mr Doogue said.

The Victorian Council for Civil Liberties described the release of the photos a “serious violation of Laidley’s human rights” with “transphobic overtones”.

“It appears that these images were released with the intention of publicly ‘outing’ Laidley,” the group said in a statement.

“Members of transgender and gender-non-conforming communities routinely report feeling distrustful towards police, and this incident will only further their concerns.”

LGBTIQ Legal, a branch of the community law service group St Kilda Legal Service, said they were concerned the incident would lead to further distrust of police officers.

“This incident requires an independent investigation as the first of many steps that are required for Victoria Police to do better for trans and gender non-conforming Victorians, many of whom have already experienced discrimination,” they said.

Laidley faced Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Sunday and will remain in custody until May 11 after not applying for bail.

He played 151 AFL games from 1987-97 and was an inaugural player at West Coast before joining the Kangaroos from 1993.

He played 99 games at Arden St, including their 1996 premiership before he succeeded Denis Pagan as North Melbourne coach in 2003 and in 149 games led them to the finals three times, before resigning during the 2009 season.

He then had assistant coaching roles at three AFL clubs until 2015. He is currently Essendon District Football League club Maribyrnong Park’s senior coach.  

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Former Jacksonville Jaguars linebacker Telvin Smith was arrested Wednesday and charged with one count of unlawful sexual activity with certain minors, per the Duval County Jail’s website.

Smith, 29, was booked into the jail at 5:20 p.m. ET. He is being held on a $50,003 bond, and there is no court date listed. He was arrested by officers from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office at his home in a gated community.

A law enforcement source told ESPN that Smith is accused of having sex with a 17-year-old girl multiple times, both at his home and in his vehicle, in August and September. The source said the girl told a friend and a family member what happened after the first encounter with Smith.

The source also said investigators found evidence in Smith’s car that linked him to the girl.

Per Florida Statute 794.05, the charge of unlawful sexual activity with certain minors is a second-degree felony and applies to any person age 24 or older who engages in sexual activity with a person 16 or 17 years old.

“The Jaguars are aware of the report involving former linebacker Telvin Smith,” the team said in a statement. “The club is unable to comment further on this ongoing investigation.”

This incident marked the second time in five months that there was a police presence at Smith’s home. A crime scene van spent several hours there on Nov. 28 and towed a black Cadillac Escalade registered to Smith away from the home. A source told ESPN that the police presence then was tied to the alleged incidents with the teen.

Smith was not arrested at that time.

Smith hasn’t played for the Jaguars since the 2018 season finale. He announced on social media in May 2019 that he would not play football that season, saying he needed to take time off for his family and his health. He did not attend the Jaguars’ voluntary offseason conditioning program or organized team activities and missed the mandatory three-day minicamp in June. The team put Smith on the reserve/retired list before training camp began in July.

Smith was due to make $9.75 million this season, and his contract has tolled, which means the remaining three years on the deal (he was scheduled to make $10 million in 2020 and $10.25 million in 2021) are paused but would pick up again if he were to return to the Jaguars at some point.

The Jaguars drafted Smith in the fifth round of the 2014 draft. A positive marijuana test at the NFL combine contributed to his dropping and, per league rules, placed him in the NFL’s substance abuse program.

Smith missed four games — all because of injuries — in his five seasons.

According to ESPN Stats & Information, Smith has more solo tackles (441) than any other player since he entered the NFL, and his 581 total tackles rank fourth in that span. Smith has nine interceptions (three of which he returned for touchdowns) in his career.

Smith, who had a career-high 134 tackles in 2018, was a Pro Bowler and second-team All-Pro in 2017 as part of a Jaguars defense that finished second in the NFL in sacks and turnovers forced and led the league in pass defense. The Jaguars scored seven defensive touchdowns that season, and Smith had two, as well as another in the postseason.

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SWAT team raids home of former Jaguars player Telvin Smith, 29, as he’s arrested for unlawful sexual activity with minors

• Telvin Smith was charged with unlawful sexual activity with minors Wednesday
• A SWAT team was pictured surrounding his Florida home at 2pm
• They cleared the home and carried out search as a crime scene investigation unit arrived
• He was booked into jail at 5.20pm and was held on $50,000 bail 
• According to a police record, the arrest pertains to an incident that took place between 10pm on August 31 and 12pm on September 1, 2019 at a residence 
• Jaguars told DailyMail.com they ‘are aware of the report involving former linebacker Telvin Smith’ and are ‘unable to comment further’
• Cops were seen at his home in November and towed his car away. It’s unclear if the incident is related

By Leah Simpson For Dailymail.com

Published: 18:34 EDT, 29 April 2020 | Updated: 19:46 EDT, 29 April 2020

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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Former Jaguars linebacker Telvin Smith was arrested Wednesday and charged with one count of unlawful sexual activity with certain minors, according to the Duval County Jail’s website.

Smith, 29, was booked into the jail at 5:20 p.m. ET. He was later released on a $50,003 bond.

There is no court date listed. Smith was arrested by officers from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office at his home in a gated community.

According to a copy of the arrest warrant obtained by ESPN, Smith is accused of having sex with a 17-year-old girl multiple times, both at his home and in his vehicle, in August and September. The girl told Smith the day they first met that she had recently turned 17 and a witness corroborated that, according to the report.

The warrant states that Smith offered the girl $200 while driving her back to her car after their first sexual encounter and told her not to tell anyone about the encounter because he could go to jail. She eventually accepted $100 from Smith, who also asked the girl to say he was her “mentor” if anyone asked about them meeting, according to the warrant.

After investigators collected evidence from Smith’s vehicle, the results were consistent with a DNA sample taken from the girl and the likelihood that the sample came from someone other than her “was greater than one in 700 billion,” according to the warrant.

Per Florida Statute 794.05, the charge of unlawful sexual activity with certain minors is a second-degree felony and applies to any person age 24 or older who engages in sexual activity with a person 16 or 17 years old.

“The Jaguars are aware of the report involving former linebacker Telvin Smith,” the team said in a statement. “The club is unable to comment further on this ongoing investigation.”

This marked the second time in five months that there was a police presence at Smith’s home. A crime scene van spent several hours there on Nov. 28 and towed a black Cadillac Escalade registered to Smith away from the home. A source told ESPN that the police presence then was tied to the alleged incidents with the teenager.

Smith was not arrested at that time.

He has not played for the Jaguars since the 2018 season finale. He announced on social media in May 2019 that he would not play football that season, saying he needed to take time off for his family and his health. He did not attend the Jaguars’ voluntary offseason conditioning program or organized team activities and missed the mandatory three-day minicamp in June. The team put Smith on the reserve/retired list before training camp began in July.

Smith was due to make $9.75 million last season, and his contract has tolled, which means the remaining three years on the deal (scheduled to make $10 million in 2020, $10.25 million in 2021) are paused but would pick up again if he were to return to the Jaguars at some point.

The Jaguars selected Smith in the fifth round of the 2014 draft. A positive marijuana test at the NFL combine contributed to his dropping and, per league rules, placed him in the NFL’s substance abuse program.

Smith missed four games — all because of injuries — in his five seasons.

According to ESPN Stats & Information, Smith has more solo tackles (441) than any other player since he entered the NFL, and his 581 total tackles ranks fourth in that span. Smith has nine interceptions (three of which he returned for touchdowns) in his career.

Smith, who had a career-high 134 tackles in 2018, was a Pro Bowler and second-team All-Pro in 2017 as part of a Jaguars defense that finished second in the NFL in sacks and turnovers forced and led the league in pass defense. The Jaguars scored seven defensive touchdowns that season, and Smith had two, as well as another in the postseason.