Parker Kingston was expected to be one of BYU’s leading receivers in 2026. Instead, the former Cougar is back in court after prosecutors revived a first-degree felony rape charge that was dismissed over the summer.

The new filing has also brought previously reported details from text messages and a police interview into sharper focus. Washington County prosecutors refiled the charge on November 12, nearly five months after a judge dismissed the original case.

“It is disappointing that the State has decided to refile charges. Parker has always maintained and continues to maintain his innocence,” Kingston’s attorneys said. “There is no greater power than the Government, and that power should be wielded responsibly.”

Kingston, 22, is accused of sexually assaulting a 20-year-old woman at her St. George apartment on February 23, 2025. He has maintained that the encounter was consensual, and his attorneys have challenged the way prosecutors presented the evidence.

The case now returns to the court with both sides standing by sharply different accounts of what happened that night.

The latest charging documents include messages Kingston exchanged with a friend identified as K.W. before and after his visit to the woman’s home. The language in the exchange drew attention after KUTV reporter Heidi Hatch shared details from the new filing on November 12.

Investigators questioned Kingston about the word “crack” during an interview in November 2025. According to the charging document, he told them it meant having intercourse. The document also says he told officers that he felt bad about what had happened.

That interview contains another important part of the dispute. Parker Kingston told investigators that A.M. had not said no to sexual intercourse. But he also said he received a message from her about an hour after leaving her home.

According to his account, she told him that she had not wanted to have sex and had told him no. The prosecution’s account describes a different sequence. Court documents say Kingston and A.M. had been communicating for about a month before the alleged incident.

They initially connected on Instagram before moving their conversations to Snapchat. When Parker Kingston made plans to visit St. George, A.M. allegedly told him not to come if sex was the only reason for the trip.

The filing states that the two eventually went to her apartment, where they spent time talking and watching a movie. They engaged in some sexual activity, which A.M. described as consensual, but did not have intercourse.

She then stepped out of the room to get ready for bed. According to her account, Kingston’s behavior changed when she came back. She alleged that he became more forceful and attempted to take things further.

She told investigators that she said no four times before he forced intercourse, according to the charging documents. She reported the alleged assault at St. George Regional Hospital on February 27, four days after the encounter.

The available accounts remain contested. The allegations in the filing have not been proven in court, and Parker Kingston has not been convicted of a crime.

Kingston’s attorneys, Cara Tangaro and Scott Williams, pushed back against the new filing on November 12. They said their client continues to maintain his innocence and also took aim at Washington County Attorney Jerry Jaeger’s presentation of the evidence.

“The probable cause statement presents a quote from Parker’s voluntary interview with law enforcement and does not give the full context,” Parker Kingston’s legal team said.

The defense also pointed to messages exchanged between Kingston and A.M. after he left her apartment. According to the account reported by the Salt Lake Tribune, Kingston sent her a message saying: “There wasn’t one time where you indicated you didn’t want to do it. There wasn’t one time when you said no.”

He then wrote, “I’m sorry that you feel that way,” before adding that they had made mistakes and needed to learn from them. Moreover, there is another complication in the available record.

KSL reported that most of the conversations between Kingston and A.M. took place on Snapchat and are no longer available. That leaves the court to examine the evidence that remains, including the messages cited by both sides and the accounts given to investigators.

Jaeger, meanwhile, said the decision to bring the case back was made with A.M.’s support. “With the support of the alleged victim, I have made the decision to refile the case,” he said in a statement, adding that prosecutors would proceed based on the totality of the evidence.

The statement from Kingston’s lawyers makes clear that the defense intends to contest the prosecution’s version of events. Neither the new charge nor the messages settle the central question, and that will be addressed through the legal process.

Why the original case against Parker Kingston was dismissed in June

Parker Kingston was first taken into custody in February 2026 over the alleged incident from a year earlier. Prosecutors were preparing to take the case to a jury in July, but later sought an extension, delaying the proceedings.

Prosecutors told the court that A.M. was not in a position to take the stand at that point and asked to push the trial back. Her lawyer backed the request, pointing to her medical situation. Kingston’s attorneys objected, however, arguing that delaying the case again would violate his right to a speedy trial.

“The state is not ready. The victim is unprepared to testify, and that’s okay. The case is dismissed without prejudice,” stated Judge Jay Winward, as reported by ABC 4.

The ruling left the door open for prosecutors to file the charge again because it was dismissed without prejudice. Kingston was not acquitted, and the court never ruled on whether the alleged assault took place.

The ruling also drew a strong response from A.M.’s family, who said they were shocked and disappointed. They said that their daughter had shown courage by coming forward.

“Today, that trust was shattered when the court prioritized getting an athlete back on the field over justice,” the family said in a statement in June. “The fight for justice for our daughter will continue.”

Prosecutors had also indicated after the dismissal that they intended to refile. “The State intends to refile the case at a later date. At this time, we request that the identity of the alleged victim remain protected,” the prosecutors said.

Jaeger has now followed through, saying the alleged victim’s support allowed the office to move ahead with the case. The legal case has also changed the course of Kingston’s football career.

He was coming off his best season at BYU in 2025, finishing with 67 receptions for 928 yards and five touchdowns. Kingston was expected to be a senior in 2026 and a primary target in BYU’s passing game.

That plan disappeared after his arrest in February. A university spokesperson said he was no longer a BYU student and had been removed from the football team. Now, he is scheduled to appear in Utah’s 5th District Court in St. George on December 17.