Buzbee denied that argument.
“Mr. Watson might now declare he had consent to do what he did to those victims, however let’s be clear — of their minds he didn’t have consent, PERIOD,” his assertion stated.
A girl who didn’t sue Watson advised The Instances that he initiated intercourse together with her throughout all three of their therapeutic massage appointments.
The place are the incidents stated to have taken place?
A lot of the incidents are stated to have taken place in Texas, however in accordance with the complaints, two are stated to have occurred in Georgia, the place Watson is from, and in California and Arizona, throughout his visits there. The entire lawsuits have been filed in Harris County, Texas, as a result of that’s the place Watson lives and works.
Will the N.F.L. take any motion?
The league opened an investigation into Watson’s conduct in March 2021. In a letter addressed to Buzbee, Lisa Friel, a particular counsel for investigations on the league, requested the cooperation of the accusers. A league spokesman stated the matter was underneath overview in relation to the N.F.L.’s private conduct coverage. That coverage governs off-field conduct involving gamers and coaches.
The Texans’ chief govt, Cal McNair, wrote to season ticket-holders that April that the group took the allegations “very significantly” and would cooperate totally with the Houston Police and N.F.L. investigations.
“Whereas we await the conclusion of those investigations, we specific our robust stance in opposition to any type of sexual assault,” McNair stated.
Hardin has stated that Watson is cooperating with all investigations.
How have Watson’s sponsors responded?
Nike suspended its contract with Watson in April of final yr, the day after two of the accusers gave public statements describing their allegations.
“We’re deeply involved by the disturbing allegations and have suspended Deshaun Watson. We’ll proceed to carefully monitor the state of affairs,” the corporate stated in a press release.
A lot of his different sponsorships, which included ones with Rolex and Texas companies, have been allowed to run out.
Who’s Tony Buzbee?
Tony Buzbee is a Houston plaintiffs lawyer who has labored on private damage circumstances for years however is maybe greatest identified for his involvement in mass tort and class-action circumstances, together with the litigation after Hurricane Ike and the BP oil spill within the Gulf of Mexico a decade in the past. He doesn’t seem to have represented many ladies in circumstances involving sexual assault.
