Bad Panda? Santa Cruz DA Reviewing Sandoval Case

Santa Cruz County's district attorney said he is reviewing the sheriff's decision not to arrest San Francisco Giants player Pablo Sandoval in connection with a woman's claim that he sexually assaulted her at an Aptos resort last month.

The sheriff's office said in a news release today that its investigation did not turn up enough evidence to warrant an arrest, and that it was turning the results of the investigation over to the district attorney's office.

Sandoval, 25, was being investigated in connection with an incident in which a 21-year-old woman told authorities that the Giants third baseman had assaulted her in Aptos after a night out in Santa Cruz last month.

Today's announcement, which followed more than a month of investigation, does not mean the case is closed, District Attorney Bob Lee said. It is still possible Sandoval could face charges in the case.

"We're the ones who actually decide whether a crime has been committed," Lee said. Lee said his office had been working closely with the sheriff's office since the Santa Cruz County woman filed her complaint at 4:25 a.m. on the morning of June 1.

She told investigators she had met a group of people in downtown Santa Cruz the previous night then gone to the resort, according to the sheriff's office.

-- From Bay City News