“Mr. Watson has been adamant that he did not engage in any inappropriate perform and we strongly believe that him,” attorney Rusty Hardin stated in a assertion. He claimed his authorized team has uncovered “an avalanche of phony accusations.”
The cases have been submitted independently but pretrial motions are getting heard by a person decide, Hardin has reported.
In their authorized reaction, Watson’s lawyers say they recently realized the identities of his accusers and that led them to uncover evidence that “several allegations in this onslaught of scenarios are only not true or precise.”
“These lawsuits are replete with mischaracterizations of Mr. Watson’s conduct. These assortment from getting misleading, to fraudulent, to slanderous,” his lawyers argue in their reaction to a assert by a person girl.
Before this month, a decide ordered numerous plaintiffs to refile their civil claims with their genuine names in its place of “Jane Doe.” Tony Buzbee, the plantiffs’ legal professional, said other gals had currently agreed to do so.
Watson’s defense staff in its submitting claims 8 plaintiffs soon after massage treatment classes “bragged about, praised, and have been thrilled” about functioning with Watson, in accordance to the document.
The reaction, submitted Monday in Texas district court in Houston, claims 7 plaintiffs willingly worked or made available to function with Watson after their alleged incidents.
The reaction states a few girls allegedly lied in their lawsuits about the range of sessions they experienced with Watson, saying much less than in fact transpired. The court submitting also claims a few girls “lied about their alleged trauma and ensuing hurt.”
According to the reaction, various plaintiffs allegedly explained to others they desired to get funds out of Watson, and an additional was explained as remaining ‘out for funds.’ The filing alleges that yet another plantiff, regardless of her assert she was not suing for financial good reasons, “would have deserted her voice and getting the voice of other alleged ‘survivors’ if Mr. Watson would concur to pay back her $100,000.”
“It was not until the plaintiffs observed an opportunity for a funds seize that they altered their tales to transform therapy classes they bragged about to pals and family members to one thing much extra nefarious,” the reaction says.
Past denying the allegations, Watson asks in the filing for a demo by jury, to recuperate his authorized expenditures and “all other reduction to which he is entitled.”
Buzbee reported in a assertion that the allegations created in the response have been “weak and obscure” and “demonstrably fake.”
“Deshaun Watson’s only protection is to call these courageous women of all ages liars,” Buzbee claimed. “I have religion that the court docket system will type out the fact as these issues progress.”
Watson is an NFL celebrity, obtaining been selected for 3 Professional Bowls in his 4 seasons with the Houston Texans. In accordance to the Spotrac web page, he signed a 4-calendar year, $156 million agreement in 2020.
CNN’s Jenn Selva and Jennifer Henderson contributed to this report.
