NFL star Deshaun Watson is being sued for more than $1million after being accused of sexual assaulting a woman in Texas four years ago.
The Cleveland Browns quarterback, who in 2022 reached confidential settlements with 20 women over sexual misconduct lawsuits, is alleged to have assaulted the woman at her apartment.
According to TMZ, she claims Watson stripped naked and ‘demanded’ the woman ‘massage his butt’ before grabbing her and committing sexually assault. Watson has not publicly addressed the allegations.
In 2021, the then-Houston Texans star was hit with 26 sexual-assault lawsuits and has since settled 23 of them, with the other remaining cases expected to go to civil trial.
Despite not yet being hit with criminal charges, the NFL suspended him for 11 games during the 2022 season while also issuing a $5million fine.
Deshaun Watson is being sued for more than $1million after being accused of sexual assault
Watson signed the then-largest guaranteed contract in NFL history when he put pen to paper on a $230m deal with the Browns, who traded six draft picks, including three first-rounders, to the Texans in return back in 2022.
After spending the majority of his time in Cleveland on the sidelines due to injury and his NFL suspension, he threw two interceptions and took six sacks in a 33-17 blowout loss against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
The woman’s attorney is Tony Buzbee, who also represented the 20-plus other women who made sexual-assault allegations against Watson told TMZ, ‘This is an extremely serious matter.’
‘We intend to pursue this case with the same aggressiveness with which we pursued the others. We want a jury trial.’
During the alleged altercation with Watson, the woman was able to escape and grabbed a ‘heavy piece of décor for self-defense’ and demanded that the then-Texans quarterback leave her apartment.
The woman said she was afraid to report her interaction with Watson because she ‘would be subjected to humiliation and personal attacks’ because of his celebrity status.
After the 20-plus women came forward, she was allegedly still told to stay quiet because of the matter in which the other accusers were ‘treated by Watson’s defense team and the public.’
After recently trying to resolve the matter with Watson privately and not coming to an agreement, the woman has gone public.
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