A woman in Houston filed a civil lawsuit against Deshaun Watson on Monday, accusing the Cleveland Browns quarterback of sexual assault and battery in October 2020.
The woman, who is named as “Jane Doe” in the suit, says the alleged incident happened before a dinner date at her apartment.
According to the lawsuit, Watson, who was playing for the Houston Texans at the time, met the woman at a local restaurant and suggested that the two go out on a date at a shopping mall. The woman didn’t want to be in public with Watson, leading her to propose the dinner at her apartment.
Before Watson arrived at her residence, the woman alleges that he called her and yelled at her because he struggled to find where she lived. The woman alleges when Watson arrived she went to the bathroom. She claims when she returned to her bedroom, Watson was “completely naked on her bed, lying face down on his stomach.”
The lawsuit says Watson then demanded a massage, motioning toward his knees and groin. The woman said she was not a masseuse, but Watson proceeded to ask her if there was anything she would rather do instead. The suit states that the woman didn’t have time to answer before Watson “partially disrobed Jane Doe and penetrated her vagina without consent, implicit or explicit.” After being sexually assaulted for “several minutes,” the woman was able to break free from Watson, and she grabbed a heavy object to protect herself.
Watson was “enraged” as he “stormed out of” the woman’s apartment to end the alleged interaction, the suit states.
The NFL declined to comment on the lawsuit, while the Browns have yet to respond.
In 2022, Watson was suspended for 11 games after more than 24 women came forward to accuse him of sexual assault and inappropriate conduct that occurred while he was getting massages. Criminal charges were never brought against Watson, but in the summer of 2022, he reached settlements in 23 of the 24 civil lawsuits that he was facing. The woman says she did not come forward earlier after seeing the backlash other women who made allegations against Watson received.
The suit also says the woman “has suffered severe mental anguish as a result of this incident,” and “experiences nervous breakdowns and difficulty sleeping.”
Watson was traded to the Browns in March 2022, and given a contract that included $230m guaranteed. The 28-year-old has struggled badly since joining the Browns and was booed by home fans as he threw two interceptions in Cleveland’s loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.