Editors’ note: This story contains accounts of sexual assault. If you or someone you know is a survivor of sexual assault, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 or at https://www.rainn.org.
Another civil lawsuit alleging sexual misconduct has been filed against Deshaun Watson, marking the second in the span of a week and 24th active case against the Browns quarterback.
Watson is facing 23 other active civil lawsuits filed by massage therapists, each detailing graphic accounts of sexual harassment and sexual assault that occurred during massage therapy sessions. The accounts range from Watson allegedly refusing to cover his genitals to the quarterback “touching [a plaintiff] with his penis and trying to force her to perform oral sex on him.”
During his introductory press conference with the Browns in March, Watson denied assaulting, harassing or disrespecting any woman.
Monday’s filing details a similar account to the 23 other suits against Watson. A Houston-area massage therapist alleges two incidents of misconduct against Watson in August 2020, in which Watson masturbated and ejaculated on the plaintiff without her consent. Watson allegedly “offered no apology or explanation for his conduct,” before he paid via Cash App and left the plaintiff’s apartment.
The first massage was said to be “professional,” and although the plaintiff quoted the quarterback $55 for the session, he allegedly paid her $100 through Cash App. The second massage took place four days later, and at first, “Watson reminded Plaintiff that he only wanted her to focus on his upper body and abdomen. He then demanded that she work on his inner thighs and quadriceps.” The filing details how his “tone became aggressive,” telling her to go higher on his inner thighs.
When Watson began to masturbate, the lawsuit says the plaintiff “immediately stopped the massage.” He asked her at one point while masturbating standing up “Where do you want me to put it?” Because of the “shock,” the plaintiff says she “could not speak” and “froze.” When he ejaculated, some “got on Plaintiff’s chest and face,” the suit says.
In a footnote in the lawsuit, the filing states that “the incident with Deshaun Watson caused Plaintiff to quit massage therapy altogether.”
The newest filing references comments made by Watson’s lawyer, Rusty Hardin, during an interview last week with Sports Radio 610. He said “happy endings” are not a crime. The civil filing reads, “Watson’s lawyer goes on to say that making a massage therapist ‘uncomfortable’ due to the type of conduct described herein is not a crime.”
Hardin addressed the latest lawsuit with a statement on Monday.
“We are unable to respond to the new lawsuit at this time,” Hardin said. “Our legal team did not have time to investigate this new filing and had not heard her name until today. Deshaun continues to deny he did anything inappropriate with any of the plaintiffs.”
The 23rd active petition filed early last week detailed three separate incidences with Watson in 2020 and said his “behavior grew worse during every massage.” During the first massage, the quarterback “kept demanding Plaintiff to go inside of his anus” and by the third, “When Plaintiff tried to massage his legs, Watson became aggressive and demanded that she only massage his buttocks and made her massage that area. He repeatedly requested that Plaintiff have sex with him,” telling her that there was a condom in his bag, according to the petition.
He proceeded to touch her between her legs, forcing her to massage from a distance away from him to avoid being groped. Following this incident, Smith quit her job, per the filing.
The filing also asserts that A New U Salon Spa “provided” women for Watson. “Dionne Louis, the owner of the spa, facilitated massages for Watson and knew Watson was attempting to have sex with them,” it says. According to Cash App receipts and text messages included in the petition documents, “Watson paid Dionne Louis at least five thousand dollars for Louis’s ‘work.’”
Hardin released a statement saying the quarterback “vehemently denies the allegations.” These filings came after two other plaintiffs, Ashley Solis and Kyla Hayes, gave their first national TV interviews with HBO’s Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel.
Although the civil lawsuits are still ongoing, Cleveland traded for Watson in March and signed him to a five-year contract worth a guaranteed $230 million. As far as the league investigation, commissioner Roger Goodell revealed last Tuesday that the league is “nearing the end of the investigation” into Watson. However, no timeline was provided on when a ruling would be issued by the disciplinary officer.
Watson did previously face multiple criminal complaints; however, he is not facing charges following two separate grand jury hearings. A Harris County grand jury returned nine “no” decisions on nine criminal complaints against Watson. in March. A Harris County prosecutor said that the decision concluded criminal proceedings against him in that county, and Watson was traded shortly afterward. A grand jury in Brazoria County declined to charge Watson on a 10th count on March 24.
