Watson faces another civil lawsuit
Another woman filed a civil lawsuit against Deshaun Watson, alleging that the suspended Cleveland Browns quarterback pressured her to have oral sex during a massage session in 2020.
It is the 26th civil lawsuit filed against Deshaun Watson, accusing him of sexual misconduct or sexual battery during massages.
In the lawsuit filed Thursday in Harris County (Texas), Deshaun Watson is accused of soliciting the plaintiff through Instagram with a direct message for a massage in the Houstonian hotel room in Texas in December 2020, while he was playing for the Texans. The lawsuit states that, during the session, Watson “continually pressured (the) plaintiff to massage her private area” before “toweling off” and “offered to let her ‘get on top.'” Plaintiff ” refused to have sex with Watson, however, he was able to pressure her to have oral sex” and that “Watson paid (plaintiff) $300 for his services, although he normally charged $115 for an hour massage.”
According to the lawsuit, the woman has “suffered from severe depression and anxiety” since the alleged incident.
“My client’s experience with Deshaun Watson follows a series of disturbingly similar encounters reported by more than 20 women who filed suit against the NFL superstar.”
“Like so many others, my client spent nearly two years struggling to cope with the shame and trauma of all that had been stolen from her and the daily pain that had become her reality.”
“Knowing her story will generate difficult conversations, criticism and even victim blaming. The strength and courage of these other women, gave my client the courage to stand up and speak out. She seeks justice not only for herself and her own situation, but for the more than 20 other women who refused to be shamed and silenced, and the victims who have yet to come forward.”
Deshaun Watson settled 23 of the lawsuits against him last summer, but one remains pending, according to the plaintiff’s attorney, Tony Buzbee, who also represented the other women who had sued. One lawsuit was dismissed after a judge ruled that the plaintiffs must disclose their names. Two other women filed criminal complaints against Watson, but did not sue.
In July, the Texans reached settlements with 30 women who made claims or were prepared to make claims against the NFL organization for what Buzbee called their alleged “enabling” of Watson’s behavior. The New York Times reported over the summer that the Texans arranged for Watson to see massage therapists in a Houston hotel room.
Deshaun Watson is currently serving an 11-game suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy by committing sexual assault against massage therapists, as defined by the NFL. On Aug. 18, the NFL and the league’s Players Association reached an agreement on Watson’s suspension. He was also fined $5 million and had to undergo a mandatory treatment program.
Two grand juries in Texas declined to file criminal charges against Watson earlier this year. But Sue L. Robinson, an independent prosecutor jointly appointed by the league and the players’ union, concluded that “the NFL had the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that Mr. Watson engaged in sexual assault.” Robinson also concluded in his report that Deshaun Watson’s behavior was both “egregious” and “predatory.”
Watson has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and stresses that people have not been interested in hearing his side of the story.
“I will continue to defend my innocence; settlements and things like that happen (and) it doesn’t mean a person is guilty of anything,” he emphasized on Aug. 18, after the settlement agreement. “I feel like a person has the opportunity to defend their innocence and prove it, and we proved it from a legal standpoint, and I will continue to move forward as an individual and as a person.”
Deshaun Watson was allowed to enter the Browns’ training facility this week after being suspended since Aug. 30 as part of the settlement. He cannot practice with the team until Nov. 14 and will not be eligible to play until Week 13, when the Browns travel to face the Texans in Houston on Dec. 4.
