Former Florida football quarterback Jalen Kitna is speaking out for the first time since pleading no contest last month to two misdemeanors after previously facing charges involving child pornography.

Kitna pleaded no contest to two counts of disorderly conduct on July 5th, resulting in the dismissal of five felony charges stemming from his November arrest. He was subsequently sentenced to one year of probation, but will not face jail time nor be required to register as a sex offender.

“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. The extensive 6 month long investigation brought the prosecution to the conclusion I knew all along – this was not a child pornography case,” Kitna said in a statement, per TMZ.

“November 30, 2022, at the age of 19, detectives arrived early in the morning and started asking about my pornography use. I was totally compliant, I shared all my passwords, and hid nothing from them,” he continued. “They told me an image I shared online was potentially of an underage female. I was shocked, because I had found it on an easily accessible, legal site, and I was never looking for illegal material. The photo included only a portion of the female body, I had no reason to believe the photo might be illegal.”

Kitna, the son of former NFL quarterback Jon Kitna, signed with the Gators in 2021 as a four-star recruit out of Burleson, Texas. He redshirted as a freshman, then appeared in four games as a backup last season, throwing for 181 yards and a touchdown while completing 10-of-14 passes.

On November 30th, Kitna was arrested by Gainesville police on five different charges—three counts of possession of child pornography and two counts of distribution of child exploitation material. Florida immediately suspended him, ultimately dismissing Kitna from the team and banning him from setting foot on campus until 2025.

Jalen Kitna officially entered the transfer portal on July 10th, less than a week after the felony charges against him were dropped. He has three years of collegiate eligibility remaining.