From Sue Robinson’s own insights, it’s hard to believe that Deshaun Watson’s behavior was “nonviolent.”

Imagine you are at an ATM near your home. You are on your way to your niece’s high school graduation and you want to deposit some money into her card. As soon as you let go of the bank lobby door and step back onto the sidewalk, a taller, imposing figure approaches you and demands the money you just withdrawn.

You obey and they run away. Your heart is pounding in your ears, your hands are shaking.

The police find the robber, and as the robber stands before a judge, you realize that not only does he show no remorse, but he did the same thing to at least seven other people in the days leading up to and following your robbery.

The judge acknowledges that the crimes were committed, even saying they believe the robber will do the same again. But since they never actually harmed you with a gun or their fists and only threatened you verbally, five hours of unsupervised community service is the penalty.

you would be angry right? After all, you may not have been physically hurt, but the mental and emotional damage meant nightmares for weeks, and months later, you still dread walking in your neighborhood that not so long ago made you feel comfortable.

In short, this is what independent umpire Sue L. Robinson told accusers of Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson in her decision released Monday, the meandering one in which she wrote, Yes, Watson committed sexual assault, but in her assessment, he was “non-violent”.

Much of her 16-page verdict — which Robinson said was limited to the four massage therapists whose testimony was included in the NFL’s investigative report, rather than all 24 women who filed civil suits — was nonsensical. But apparently for Robinson, since there were no rape kits, no bruises, no torn underwear anywhere in an evidence envelope, the mental and emotional trauma suffered by the prosecutors was apparently not worth considering when she was handing out Watson’s sentence.

Of the four women the NFL introduced to argue during the hearing, one said she needed therapy after her appointment with Watson and was “struggling to work,” according to the verdict. Another said she battles depression and insomnia because of what Watson allegedly did to her. Another is considering quitting massage therapy altogether.

The story goes on

Isn’t that violent?

Ashley Solis, the first woman to file a lawsuit against Watson, has come forward multiple times alleging Watson’s sexually inappropriate and undesirable behavior during her appointment. Two years after her interaction with Watson, the memory of it still brings her to tears, as evidenced by her interview with Soledad O’Brien on the HBO series Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, which aired in May.

Isn’t that violent?

Since Robinson’s decision gives the impression that she was literally bound by the personal code of conduct rather than its spirit, she might want to look up the definition of “violent” because it’s not as narrow as she thinks it is. Violence can be in force or effect. The effect of Watson’s behavior on Solis and these other women was violent.

Sexual assault no longer requires the physical violence Robinson seems to believe than racism requires the N-word and white hoods. Both without physical interaction can leave wounds and cause permanent scars – and in Watson’s case there was allegedly too, with some women accusing him of touching them with his penis or ejaculating on them, or forcing them to perform oral sex. Sexual assault is dependent on consent. These women did not give Watson their approval for his behavior.

Robinson’s words may have many long-lasting consequences, few of which are good, but for now they serve to highlight that too many people still don’t have a good enough understanding of what sexual violence is, including former federal judges.

And they also underline for many of us how some people, even other women, perceive women as disposable, especially if they are black or brown or work in the service industry.

Robinson wrote that she believed the NFL’s claim that Watson “had a sexual purpose — not just a therapeutic purpose — in making these arrangements.”

She wrote that Watson knew “that the sexualised contact was undesirable”.

She wrote that Watson committed sexual assault as defined by the NFL.

She wrote that Watson still shows no remorse, has acted with “reckless disregard for the consequences,” and that his pattern of behavior is “more egregious than any previously reviewed by the NFL.”

She considers Watson such a danger that she would like him to only be massaged by his team or a team-approved therapist for the rest of his career.

To some of us that sounds like a predator, someone who knows what they are doing is wrong, does it anyway and might do it again in the future.

And yet Robinson gave Watson a slap on the hand in the face of all this.

His non-throwing at that.