Texans' Deshaun Watson accused of indecent conduct in civil lawsuit; QB denies wrongdoing

[njbuff]

WTF is going on here?

[whatdrought]

2 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

 

Does her claim say that he indicated he has done this to multiple women/multiple times? If not, what’s the legality of including that phrasing in her suit - given as it’s not a class action suit. 
 

That’s part of my issue with the whole thing- these accusations are all building on each other in a way that the legal system doesn’t support. 

[GunnerBill]

6 minutes ago, whatdrought said:

Does her claim say that he indicated he has done this to multiple women/multiple times? If not, what’s the legality of including that phrasing in her suit - given as it’s not a class action suit. 
 

That’s part of my issue with the whole thing- these accusations are all building on each other in a way that the legal system doesn’t support. 

 

I mean you can assert whatever you like in your statement of claim, but you might be asked to evidence that statement at some point and I agree given that these are at the moment separate lawsuits it is hard to see how you would support that unless the woman involved was subject of or witness to multiple incidents. 

[YoloinOhio]

Summary of the 14 allegations 

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/31113664/summary-lawsuits-deshaun-watson?appsrc=sc

[Mark80]

I will rush to judgement.  I'm sorry, but 14 suits now?  This is not a money grab.  This scumbags career is over.

[Canadian Bills Fan]

Entire thing is very odd and suspicious.

 

the fact that he finds all these women on IG? I am currently looking for a RMT while mine is on MAT leave and use Google lol Never even thought of IG

 

Very odd that all stories share similar complaints and specific details. Makes it hard to think all 14 women are in this together.

 

If I'm Watson, I'm sweating buckets right now

 

 

[Mango]

43 minutes ago, BillsFan4 said:

A few things look somewhat suspicious to me, if actually true.

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/texans-star-deshaun-watson-now-facing-13-sexual-misconduct-lawsuits-under-investigation-by-nfl/

 

- it seems like almost every time he went for a massage, he went to a new, relatively unknown female masseuse.

 

- most appear to be single mothers he reached out to on Instagram

 

- the details shared by all of these women are very similar.

 

- just the sheer number of women coming forward (13 lawsuits filed so far)

 

Why look for random female masseuses on Instagram?

 

Why go to unknown/cheap masseuses at all when you have access to the best trainers + therapy in the world?

 

Why a new person all the time? Most people I know who go to massage therapy find a therapist they like.

 

 

We don’t even know if these allegations are true though. I’ll hold judgement until I see how Watson’s lawyer responds and what evidence both sides offer.

 

My $0.02 is that much like rape, this is not about sex or massages, it is about power. He can afford any massage therapist in the world. He can also afford any escort in the world.  If it were about just a "kink" or getting off, he could absolutely have a rotation of women on speed dial that he rotates through every month (or whatever). I am sure there is no shortage of escorts in Houston who do this regularly. But he didn't because it was never about that. 

I agree, this doesn't make sense from a kink, sex, or even money perspective. All it takes is one to be true, and the odds of 20 women all lying is slim to none. 

The one thing that has shifted for me is, did ownership know about it the whole time, and work to keep it quite so they could keep their franchise QB. But now that he keeps asking to leave, they are cleaning the skeletons out of the closest. 

[ndirish1978]

52 minutes ago, Back2Buff said:

 

Sorry but that makes zero sense to me.  I don't understand how a person wouldn't first go to the police in a sexual assault situation.  Like I understand the victims hesitation to do anything based on fear or other factors, but if the person has the courage to come forward, the police should be contacted right away instead of the media or a lawyer.  

 

Ok for argument's sake let's remove the current allegations from discussion and just talk about Person A - a celebrity who has money and Person B - someone who gives massages, whether sports or regular. How is Person B supposed to prove that anything was done in an instance where they were coerced into a handy? Any physical evidence could be written off as a consensual act, after all Person A is a celebrity. Person B knows that going to the police will simply open them up to Person A's legal team eviscerating them in public should the allegations come to light. Person B goes to a lawyer and is told that the standard for a criminal case is beyond a reasonable doubt, which is much higher than the civil standard of preponderance of the evidence (more likely than not, the incident happened).

[JoPoy88]

20 minutes ago, Canadian Bills Fan said:

Entire thing is very odd and suspicious.

 

the fact that he finds all these women on IG? I am currently looking for a RMT while mine is on MAT leave and use Google lol Never even thought of IG

 

Very odd that all stories share similar complaints and specific details. Makes it hard to think all 14 women are in this together.

 

If I'm Watson, I'm sweating buckets right now

 

 

tons of people advertise their businesses/services on IG nowadays, but yeah, you’re right - this is looking worse by the minute for him.

[ndirish1978]

Circumstantial evidence alleged in the ESPN report should be pretty easy to corroborate - just get copies of the texts from Watson and IG messages. 

[mannc]

1 hour ago, Back2Buff said:

 

Sorry but that makes zero sense to me.  I don't understand how a person wouldn't first go to the police in a sexual assault situation.  Like I understand the victims hesitation to do anything based on fear or other factors, but if the person has the courage to come forward, the police should be contacted right away instead of the media or a lawyer.  

It’s a fair question but if you read the specific allegations, it seems like Watson was consciously doing scummy, awful things while not blatantly crossing the line that would make him criminally responsible for sexual assault.  There was enough ambiguity in the “situations” that the women may have felt that Watson was a scumbag but probably couldn’t be successfully prosecuted for a crime, especially if each of the incidents were viewed in isolation.

[DCOrange]

3 minutes ago, ndirish1978 said:

Circumstantial evidence alleged in the ESPN report should be pretty easy to corroborate - just get copies of the texts from Watson and IG messages. 

Yeah, the IG messages should be easy enough to provide to add some more legitimacy to this.

[DabillsDaBillsDaBills]

31 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

Summary of the 14 allegations 

 

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/31113664/summary-lawsuits-deshaun-watson?appsrc=sc

 

This one is the most serious allegation (forced oral), but I find it difficult to believe.

 

June 2020 and Aug. 17, 2020, at a hotel and later a spa in Houston. The plaintiff, who offers bodywork and stretch therapy classes, markets her business through Instagram. She said she initially did not know who Watson was when he contacted her through the manager at a spa where she worked. She met him at a hotel where he was staying, the lawsuit says. She says Watson groped her buttocks and *****, and she slapped him. She says he later touched her hand with his penis. On Aug. 17, she says, Watson reached out on Instagram, and she didn't realize the connection to her earlier client until he arrived. The lawsuit says Watson apologized for his earlier behavior but during the appointment exposed himself, forced the woman's mouth onto his penis and masturbated in front of her.

 

I suppose it's possible for her to not know who Watson was the first time in June. Not everyone is an NFL fan, although I'm sure Watson has lots of commercials/billboards/etc in the Houston area. The part I can't believe is she didn't recognize his name when he reached out for a second meeting in August. 

[GunnerBill]

5 minutes ago, Back2Buff said:

 

Sorry but that makes zero sense to me.  I don't understand how a person wouldn't first go to the police in a sexual assault situation.  Like I understand the victims hesitation to do anything based on fear or other factors, but if the person has the courage to come forward, the police should be contacted right away instead of the media or a lawyer.  

 

I don't know why these women did not go to the police first of all, but sexual assaults are generally under reported to the authorities so I wouldn't make too many assumptions based on that. 

[Mr. WEO]

4 hours ago, Victory Formation said:

Oh, yeah? So you don’t think that the parents of children in Houston have a lot of explaining to do when it comes to their children who wear Deshaun Watson jerseys? It is disappointing. To me it is shocking and devastating. We’re talking about a star who fell, many kids idolize him. This doesn’t happen every day. This is a scandal of Bill Cosby, Darren Sharper and Kellen Winslow like proportions. Many folks such as myself are struggling to see if there’s any good left in the world, these last two years have been tough and it’s probably only going to continue to get worse from here.

 

Yeah.

 

Stop worshiping athletes and simply enjoy the TV show.  That's also a lesson parents can impart to their kids.  If this stuff is true, tell your kid you're throwing out the jersey representing a really bad man.  Pretty simple bit of parenting right there...

 

The NFL in particular is littered with abusers throughout its history---why pick 3 and then pretend the numbers are so low as to be "shocking" that it may have happened again?  They aren't.

 

 

[Locomark]

On 3/21/2021 at 7:50 AM, DaggersEOD said:

Honestly bro, the more money they have, the less interested they are in “getting to know” the neighbors. 
 

They typically value their privacy and don’t go hang out with the neighbor down the street from my (very very very limited) experience. 

In my experience people with that level of wealth all go to the same country club and all like to connect each other to  name drop and make more money. I do not live in these neighborhoods but I do know wealthy people and they really do like to talk about each other. They may not barbecue together like a common neighbor but believe me they know each other if they live in an exclusive  neighborhood. 

[TBBills]

18 hours ago, BuffaloBills1998 said:

We are potentially looking at the end of a career.

Well at least we won't have to worry about him ending up on the Dolphins.

55 minutes ago, Locomark said:

In my experience people with that level of wealth all go to the same country club and all like to connect each other to  name drop and make more money. I do not live in these neighborhoods but I do know wealthy people and they really do like to talk about each other. They may not barbecue together like a common neighbor but believe me they know each other if they live in an exclusive  neighborhood. 

My uncle doesn't know his neighbors but knows what they do (Rich Doctor). Meanwhile my old block where my parents still live they know everyone(Middle Class).

Edited March 23, 2021 by TBBills

[BuffaloBob]

2 hours ago, whatdrought said:

Does her claim say that he indicated he has done this to multiple women/multiple times? If not, what’s the legality of including that phrasing in her suit - given as it’s not a class action suit. 
 

That’s part of my issue with the whole thing- these accusations are all building on each other in a way that the legal system doesn’t support. 

 

This is not so true any more, particularly with respect to sexual harassment behavior where a pattern of behavior is useful to illustrate a defendant's propensity to take advantage of a situation in which he feels empowered to stalk or otherwise abuse a woman because she isn't likely to feel sufficiently empowered to seek accountability.  There are a number of evolving exceptions to this black letter evidentiary rule that one cannot introduce prior bad acts to prove a propensity to commit the acts of which he is accused.

 

If the allegations are true, Watson is taking advantage of the fact that there will be no one there to corroborate his behavior, so it will be his word against hers.  Massages are acceptable situations to be naked.  There are excuses that can be made about arousal and that it was unintentional.  He is a celebrity with lots of money, and women will feel it more easy to suffer it rather than be subjected to the old victim blaming memes like, "Why were you there with him in an isolated situation and performing a sensual act and he was just misreading signals, blah blah....."

 

While these exceptions have largely evolved out of stalking and domestic violence cases, they are being extended to other situations in which there is little actual physical evidence that can be used to prove the act or too many explanations for the existence of that evidence, other than that there are boatloads of women who have been harassed in the virtually the same way and other the same or very similar circumstances.

 

[YoloinOhio]

 

[BuffaloBills1998]

15 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

 

What sources?? His lawyers lol?

[YoloinOhio]

 

His attorney gave his statement to TMZ?

[JoPoy88]

17 minutes ago, BuffaloBills1998 said:

What sources?? His lawyers lol?

that’s a safe bet yes.

[whatdrought]

5 hours ago, GunnerBill said:

 

I mean you can assert whatever you like in your statement of claim, but you might be asked to evidence that statement at some point and I agree given that these are at the moment separate lawsuits it is hard to see how you would support that unless the woman involved was subject of or witness to multiple incidents. 

Yeah. I dunno. It’s all a shitshow for sure.

[Locomark]

2 hours ago, TBBills said:

Well at least we won't have to worry about him ending up on the Dolphins.

My uncle doesn't know his neighbors but knows what they do (Rich Doctor). Meanwhile my old block where my parents still live they know everyone(Middle Class).

I live on a street with doctors and scientists driving $120k sports cars. Trust me that’s not the same community as people who own sports teams. Those communities are mega rich. Trust me they know each other. They all have yacht clubs and helicopters. 

[TBBills]

10 minutes ago, Locomark said:

I live on a street with doctors and scientists driving $120k sports cars. Trust me that’s not the same community as people who own sports teams. Those communities are mega rich. Trust me they know each other. They all have yacht clubs and helicopters. 

Maybe you just got on a special street b.c like I said it's not really like that. Not like that matters anyway since this is up to how many women now?

Edited March 23, 2021 by TBBills

[YoloinOhio]

7 hours ago, Back2Buff said:

 

Sorry but that makes zero sense to me.  I don't understand how a person wouldn't first go to the police in a sexual assault situation.  Like I understand the victims hesitation to do anything based on fear or other factors, but if the person has the courage to come forward, the police should be contacted right away instead of the media or a lawyer.  

The fact that some people would sooner believe there is a vast conspiracy by the team and that ALL of these women are lying it is the exact reason why women don’t  feel like they can go to the police. At that point they don’t know it’s not isolated to them and would be accusing a huge superstar on their own. Now, they may feel comfort and strength in numbers, bouyed by legal representation.  

[C.Biscuit97]

Getting out in front of things and just going to start accusing some women of sexual harassment to be safe.  Then if they accuse me, it’s just a revenge suit.

 

this whole story is wild. 

[Alphadawg7]

15 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

The fact that some people would sooner believe there is a vast conspiracy by the team and that ALL of these women are lying it is the exact reason why women don’t  feel like they can go to the police. At that point they don’t know it’s not isolated to them and would be accusing a huge superstar on their own. Now, they may feel comfort and strength in numbers, bouyed by legal representation.  

 

Biggest red flag for me though in this specific case is this:  Lawyer's first statement insisted this "wasn't about money" but that was only AFTER he first offered Watson a 6 figure cash settlement that he turned down.  

 

Its clearly 100% about money and not justice from the get go if you are going to allow the accused to just settle with a financial settlement and not even file the civil suits.  So thats not a good look for the accusing lawyer IMO.  

 

And this lawyer forcing this issue into the court of public opinion on social media is another red flag.  

 

So while I agree with your point above about why some women will be intimidated to come out against a celebrity, there is a lot to be suspicious of in this exact case.  

[C.Biscuit97]

Just now, Alphadawg7 said:

 

Biggest red flag for me though in this specific case is this:  Lawyer's first statement insisted this "wasn't about money" but that was only AFTER he first offered Watson a 6 figure cash settlement that he turned down.  

 

Its clearly 100% about money and not justice from the get go if you are going to allow the accused to just settle with a financial settlement and not even file the civil suits.  So thats not a good look for the accusing lawyer IMO.  

 

And this lawyer forcing this issue into the court of public opinion on social media is another red flag.  

 

So while I agree with your point above about why some women will be intimidated to come out against a celebrity, there is a lot to be suspicious of in this exact case.  

How do you a lawyer is lying? 
 

 

they are speaking. 

[Alphadawg7]

I still remain skeptical of all these accusations more based on the fact that the lawyer filing these suits to me has a bunch of red flags and seems to be on a mission focused on his personal fame and also money.

 

I will say this though...I have seen a lot of people say that Watson is innocent because he has been such a good person image wise on and off the field.  

 

Yet...squeeky clean image guys like Peyton Manning are sex addicts with all kinds of regular sexual transgressions outside their marriage.  Peyton even has apartments set up in different places for his side girls and stuff.  

 

Just like how Tiger Woods had a squeaky clean image too until all his sexual transgressions came to light. 

 

Bill Cosby in the publics eye was a saint until he wasn't.  

 

So while it definitely seems out of character for Watson, thats definitely not a reason to just assume he is innocent either.  I am still waiting to form an opinion on his guilt or innocent until I see more evidence from the accusers.  The first batch of text messages were an absolute joke and in no way proved any wrong doing by Watson.  

[Gambit]

7 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

I still remain skeptical of all these accusations more based on the fact that the lawyer filing these suits to me has a bunch of red flags and seems to be on a mission focused on his personal fame and also money.

 

I will say this though...I have seen a lot of people say that Watson is innocent because he has been such a good person image wise on and off the field.  

 

Yet...squeeky clean image guys like Peyton Manning are sex addicts with all kinds of regular sexual transgressions outside their marriage.  Peyton even has apartments set up in different places for his side girls and stuff.  

 

Just like how Tiger Woods had a squeaky clean image too until all his sexual transgressions came to light. 

 

Bill Cosby in the publics eye was a saint until he wasn't.  

 

So while it definitely seems out of character for Watson, thats definitely not a reason to just assume he is innocent either.  I am still waiting to form an opinion on his guilt or innocent until I see more evidence from the accusers.  The first batch of text messages were an absolute joke and in no way proved any wrong doing by Watson.  

Holy *****, is that Peyton stuff for real? I apparently missed that one. Exactly why you can't judge a book by it's cover. 

[Jauronimo]

15 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

I still remain skeptical of all these accusations more based on the fact that the lawyer filing these suits to me has a bunch of red flags and seems to be on a mission focused on his personal fame and also money.

 

I will say this though...I have seen a lot of people say that Watson is innocent because he has been such a good person image wise on and off the field.  

 

Yet...squeeky clean image guys like Peyton Manning are sex addicts with all kinds of regular sexual transgressions outside their marriage.  Peyton even has apartments set up in different places for his side girls and stuff.  

 

Just like how Tiger Woods had a squeaky clean image too until all his sexual transgressions came to light. 

 

Bill Cosby in the publics eye was a saint until he wasn't.  

 

So while it definitely seems out of character for Watson, thats definitely not a reason to just assume he is innocent either.  I am still waiting to form an opinion on his guilt or innocent until I see more evidence from the accusers.  The first batch of text messages were an absolute joke and in no way proved any wrong doing by Watson.  

The carefully curated public personas of celebrities is hardly any indication of their true character.  Thinking we know these people from their press conferences and charity work is the big set up.

[Alphadawg7]

7 minutes ago, Gambit said:

Holy *****, is that Peyton stuff for real? I apparently missed that one. Exactly why you can't judge a book by it's cover. 

 

Yeah, I have friends who work at NFLN, NFL, etc and its not exactly a secret, yet its never really come out either because its never been forced out via an incident.  Its also believed his wife is fully aware and they have an open relationship.  

[Warcodered]

1 minute ago, Alphadawg7 said:

 

Yeah, I have friends who work at NFLN, NFL, etc and its not exactly a secret, yet its never really come out either because its never been forced out via an incident.  Its also believed his wife is fully aware and they have an open relationship.  

Also Peyton will kill a snitch.

 

[Mr. WEO]

45 minutes ago, C.Biscuit97 said:

Getting out in front of things and just going to start accusing some women of sexual harassment to be safe.  Then if they accuse me, it’s just a revenge suit.

 

this whole story is wild. 

 

 

Don't you have to meet some women first?

[BADOLBILZ]

16 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

 

Yeah, I have friends who work at NFLN, NFL, etc and its not exactly a secret, yet its never really come out either because its never been forced out via an incident.  Its also believed his wife is fully aware and they have an open relationship.  

 

 

Jimbo used to hook him up after games in Buffalo.

 

[Hapless Bills Fan]

10 hours ago, Bill from NYC said:

Yes, and probably some form of addiction. 

 

It seems to me that Watson was making decisions. He did NOT want to go down the roads of Von Miller and Shady McCoy. They got bad press. Watson appears to have wanted powerless women that he could feel free to enjoy, abuse, and then dispose of. 

 

Again, open any newspaper and see what horrific things VERY powerful men are doing to women. In many circumstances, these women get little to no support, even from other women. 

 

As for posters on this board, maybe we should ask ourselves just how many allegations of sexual abuse/misconduct we could accumulate before we would get into very serious trouble. 

 

It just isn't fair what athletes and others in power can get away with. 

 

You make some valid points, but when it comes to allegations...I would hope that no one on this board, nor Watson, will get into trouble for allegations of anything before investigation and some form of judicial process takes place.

 

I don't care for things being adjucated in the press/social media.

[QCity]

1 hour ago, YoloinOhio said:

The fact that some people would sooner believe there is a vast conspiracy by the team and that ALL of these women are lying it is the exact reason why women don’t  feel like they can go to the police. At that point they don’t know it’s not isolated to them and would be accusing a huge superstar on their own. Now, they may feel comfort and strength in numbers, bouyed by legal representation.  

 

^^ Everyone should read this.

 

Also, it is possible that these women are telling the truth and this Buzbee lawyer is a huge money-grubbing scumbag. They're not mutually exclusive.

[Hapless Bills Fan]

Reported that several teams are still interested in trading for Watson:

 

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2021/03/21/report-several-teams-remain-interested-in-a-deshaun-watson-trade/

 

Quote

With seven lawsuits filed, five more promised, and at least 10 more possibly coming, common sense suggests that it has become difficult if not impossible for the Texans to trade quarterback Deshaun Watson. A Saturday report from Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle suggests otherwise.

 

Wilson cites unnamed sources to support the claim that multiple teams remain interested in Watson: Eagles, Panthers, Jets, Dolphins, 49ers and Broncos.

 

[SDS]

54 minutes ago, Alphadawg7 said:

 

Yeah, I have friends who work at NFLN, NFL, etc and its not exactly a secret, yet its never really come out either because its never been forced out via an incident.  Its also believed his wife is fully aware and they have an open relationship.  

Cal Ripken Jr had a reputation that was kept out of the news.