Former Florida Gators backup quarterback Jalen Kitna, the son of former NFL quarterback Jon Kitna, recently broke his silence after being cleared of five felony child pornography charges one month prior.
"Out of respect to the legal process I have chosen to remain silent the last 8 months, knowing the accusations levied against me as a teenager were not accurate and would be proven to be not true," Kitna said in a statement obtained by the Gainesville Sun on Friday (August 4).. "The extensive six-month long investigation brought the prosecution to the conclusion I knew all along this was not a child pornography case.
"I had hoped this outcome would exonerate me and provide understanding. The reaction has been quite the opposite and created even more confusion with people making judgments based only on the initial reports, which didn't tell the whole story."
Kitna, 20, accepted a plea agreement in relation to his November 2022 arrest for child pornography, the Orlando Sentinel's Edgar Thompson reported in July. The 20-year-old will instead be charged with two counts of breach of peace in relation to the incident, which could each carry a maximum sentence of 60 days in jail and a fine of $500.
The University of Florida announced that Kitna was "suspended indefinitely from the football program" after the charges were initially reported on November 30 and later dismissed from the team. Kitna rated as a three-star prospect and ranked as the No. 55 quarterback, No. 111 player from the state of Texas and No. 784 overall prospect for the 2021 national recruiting cycle prior to enrolling at the University of Florida, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.
The 20-year-old redshirted during his first season on campus and served as the team's No. 2 quarterback behind then-starter and recent Indianapolis Colts first-round pick Anthony Richardson in 2022, throwing for 181 yards and a touchdown on 10 of 14 passing in four appearances. Jon Kitna started for the Cincinnati Bengals, Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys during his 14-year NFL career and currently works as the head coach of the Lakota East High School in Liberty Township, Ohio.
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