Deshaun Watson accused of sexual assault in lawsuit

[Rob0729]

Once again, I wasn't comparing the crimes and I'm not accusing you of defending his behavior. My point is that Tug Bob Smear Pants shouldn't have an issue with Watson.

Why? Going to a prostitute isn't remotely the same thing as forcing someone to have sex with you. I can see why Kraft would have an issue with Watson.

 

[Rob0729]

I wasn't the one who called it sexual assault. That was @Rob0729 making that comparison and applying it to my statement.

You are though. You are clearly implying that since Kraft allegedly went to a prostitute that he shouldn't have a problem employing a person who allegedly forced a woman to perform sex acts on him.

 

[Simpelton]

You are though. You are clearly implying that since Kraft allegedly went to a prostitute that he shouldn't have a problem employing a person who allegedly forced a woman to perform sex acts on him.

Emphasis on "allegedly." Until someone actually manages to PROVE something, innocent until proven guilty applies.

The only reason we let go of AB is because one of the terms of him being here was to let go of the crazy, and instead of letting the Patriots and/or his legal team handle things he got into a Twitter war and doxed his accuser. AB wasn't let go because of the accusations, he was let go because he broke the handshake agreement with Patriots brass that he would stay out of the drama and started to backslide into the habits that destroyed his career the last time.

As for Deshaun, he's one of the last players I'd suspect of something like this. And the fact that the lawyer representing the client is a jilted Texans superfan makes me super duper sus about the whole thing. I wouldn't put a mark on Watson's reputation of any kind, either way, until some sort of evidentiary standard is cleared.

Quite frankly, this accusation reeks of blackmail. "Stop trying to leave the Texans and this complaint disappears overnight." Would I put the Texans of all organizations above doing that sort of thing? No, absolutely not.

 

[1960Pats]

I am not going to sit here and teach a class on the rules of evidence, but I will say this: a court petition is not evidence. Right now, that’s all we have (other than those texts which were released last night but I am not seeing anything in those which supports an allegation of sexual assault).

I am sure eventually facts will come out - perhaps even as soon as today - which will better enable all of us to make more informed opinions. But right now, we have next to nothing.

Telling me what you think is not evidence doesn't qualify as an answer to a simple, direct hypothetical question. Let me clean it up for you.
If Watson's lawyer pays off the accusers would that be enough for you to believe he's guilty? In some cases I don't think it is but in this case I would.

 

[Simpelton]

If nothing is proven, nothing is proven. This whole thing is he-said-she-said, and "he" has a squeaky clean reputation prior to this, which matters.

That and an ulterior motive for both the accuser and her lawyer make this very sketch and leaves me feeling especially skeptical. Until SOME kind of evidentiary hurdle is cleared, the correct response is to reserve judgment.

 

[JetFan79]

Regardless of how this turns out, rich folks (and especially ones vulnerable to public opinion) need to go around with body-cams.

Basically record everything at all times. Have their homes recording everything. If they're stripping down for a massage, have a 360 cam recording everything.

Hell that'd probably help keep guys in line too if they know everything is being recorded.

 

[1960Pats]

You are though. You are clearly implying that since Kraft allegedly went to a prostitute that he shouldn't have a problem employing a person who allegedly forced a woman to perform sex acts on him.

Condoning sexual assault was your take on it, not mine. I was simply implying that they both like to be serviced and Watson would be a natural fit.

 

[patman12]

If Watson's lawyer pays off the accusers would that be enough for you to believe he's guilty? In some cases I don't think it is but in this case I would.

Not my question but wanted to take a shot at it.

In this civil case, I would view it more as the lawyer willing to settle because he may believe his case has holes and settling is the best shot he has at getting his clients (and himself) a payout; not necessarily a reflection of Watson's guilt or innocence.

 

[Simpelton]

Not my question but wanted to take a shot at it.

In this civil case, I would view it more as the lawyer willing to settle because he may believe his case has holes and settling is the best shot he has at getting his clients (and himself) a payout; not necessarily a reflection of Watson's guilt or innocence.

You'd be surprised how common that is, especially with high publicity lawsuits.

 

[1960Pats]

If nothing is proven, nothing is proven. This whole thing is he-said-she-said, and "he" has a squeaky clean reputation prior to this, which matters.

That and an ulterior motive for both the accuser and her lawyer make this very sketch and leaves me feeling especially skeptical. Until SOME kind of evidentiary hurdle is cleared, the correct response is to reserve judgment.

You do know that there's more than one accuser right? And they all have squeaky clean reputations too, not that it matters. Ted Bundy had a squeaky clean reputation right up until he was convicted of bludgeoning all those women to death.

So the correct response is to reserve judgment but you're calling the accusations sketchy? That's sketchy itself. If it were one woman I might agree, but now that there are multiple accusers with stories to tell it looks worse for Watson.

 

[1960Pats]

Not my question but wanted to take a shot at it.

In this civil case, I would view it more as the lawyer willing to settle because he may believe his case has holes and settling is the best shot he has at getting his clients (and himself) a payout; not necessarily a reflection of Watson's guilt or innocence.

I'm wondering why Watson would settle. In some cases, like the Lewis vs Mudge case, it's the insurance companies that call the shots and they decide if it's worth it for them to pay off Lewis' widow, even though Dr Mudge wasn't responsible for his death and took a big hit because it wasn't his call.

IMHO, in this case it's different. Why would Watson agree to settle if he did nothing wrong?

 

[BUSTAMOVE]

Whether these accusations are true or not. Kraft will not want him for selfish reasons.
His whole massage sex scandal has faded nicely for him.
A Watson signing and his massage sex scandal would have the media in frenzy which Kraft or BB would not want to deal with.
Sex accusations too close to home for Kraft

 

[XLIX]

Telling me what you think is not evidence doesn't qualify as an answer to a simple, direct hypothetical question.

If you ask me a question, I will answer it however I want. If you don't like that, don't ask me questions.

Let me clean it up for you.
If Watson's lawyer pays off the accusers would that be enough for you to believe he's guilty?

I need more details than that ridiculously vague question before I can answer it. I'd need to know how much he paid, how many accusers got paid off, what corresponding statements were made, what evidence exists, etc, etc. If Watson paid $100,000 to make the whole thing go away, I doubt I would consider that evidence of guilt. If he paid $35 million to make the whole thing go away, then that's a whole 'nother matter.

I can certainly understand how someone accused of a crime might be willing to pay to make a major headache disappear, even if they were 100% innocent. Some people might take a stand and refuse simply on principle.... but some people might also say that it is worth paying pennies just to avoid the bigger headache (and when we consider Watson is looking at $200+ million worth of career earnings, a $100k out of court settlement would be pennies to him)

 

[XLIX]

I'm wondering why Watson would settle. In some cases, like the Lewis vs Mudge case, it's the insurance companies that call the shots and they decide if it's worth it for them to pay off Lewis' widow, even though Dr Mudge wasn't responsible for his death and took a big hit because it wasn't his call.

IMHO, in this case it's different. Why would Watson agree to settle if he did nothing wrong?

That an easy thing to say when you have no skin in the game. But for the actual individual involved, there are a multitude of reasons why someone may choose to settle, even if they did nothing wrong.

First and foremost, even if you know you did nothing wrong, that doesn't mean in this day and age a judge or jury would necessarily agree (to say nothing of the court of public opinion). It is very difficult to prove innocence. There is a lot of public pressure to "believe all women" in situations such as these.

Second of all, even if you win, the cost involved in fighting these things is oftentimes greater than the cost it would be to just make the whole thing go away. There are supposedly going to be 9 lawsuits filed against him (a number which seems to grow everyday). If Watson hires a top caliber attorney to fight each and every lawsuit, he is looking at millions of dollars in legal fees.

Third of all, there is the very real threat of having to deal with the Kangaroo Court which is the NFL. Goodell doesn't give 2 turds about doing what is right, he just wants to do whatever the winds of public opinion dictate he should. Watson is scheduled to earn $35 million in base salary in 2022. Suppose he spends the next year fighting this case with the NFL tooth and nail, but eventually loses. An 8 game suspension would cost him over $16 million.

The above are very real consideration one must make when deciding how to proceed.

 

[patsfanincleveland]

Regardless of how this turns out, rich folks (and especially ones vulnerable to public opinion) need to go around with body-cams.

Basically record everything at all times. Have their homes recording everything. If they're stripping down for a massage, have a 360 cam recording everything.

Hell that'd probably help keep guys in line too if they know everything is being recorded.

Hate to say it, but the Jets fanbase seems to make the most sense on a lot of things.

Maybe if you guys traded in some common sense...the team might win more.

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

Regardless of how this turns out, rich folks (and especially ones vulnerable to public opinion) need to go around with body-cams.

Basically record everything at all times. Have their homes recording everything. If they're stripping down for a massage, have a 360 cam recording everything.

Hell that'd probably help keep guys in line too if they know everything is being recorded.

I know there’s been athletes, I think manny Ramirez was one, who would never allow himself to be alone with a female outside the family , always had a 3rd party around when getting in elevators and such. Think that’d be another safe way to go, but a lot of these guys lifestyles don’t allow for that.

 

[RASTAN99]

Well, one got an attorney and filed a suit, after DW wouldn't agree to pay a 6 figure, ehem settlement. Her story, he came for a massage, got naked, the tip of his penis touched my hand, oh he sent me a text apologizing.

Attorney, now with national media limelight, then says: hey anybody know this guy, give me a call, maybe we can make money.

Within a couple of days he's got 9 suits lined up and ready to file. No doubt DW has a big big problem. He's f*cked.

That's not really how it went down but we are in agreement DW has a big problem.

Press conference today, will be interesting to see what comes of that.

Have a great weekend!

 

[lancerman]

I have a very hard time believing that 9 women all in the same field with a similar pattern of allegation are all taking Watson to court for the minimum settlement and go through all the shot assault victims go through in the public just to smear him for ulterior motives with no major gain

 

[patsfanincleveland]

On a side note, where exactly is our resident crew of attorney's?

Seems we hade 4 or 5 during Deflategate.

 

[XLIX]

Regardless of how this turns out, rich folks (and especially ones vulnerable to public opinion) need to go around with body-cams.

Basically record everything at all times. Have their homes recording everything. If they're stripping down for a massage, have a 360 cam recording everything.

Hell that'd probably help keep guys in line too if they know everything is being recorded.

Once again, and as per usual, our good friend and colleague @JetFan79 speaks the truth.

If I was rich and famous with women throwing themselves at me left and right, I would assume the absolute worst possible intent of every single one of 'em. (Fortunately for me, I am flat f'ing broke with women throwing themselves at me left and right )

But when it comes to these phenomenally wealthy pro athletes, some women just want to get knocked up and live a life of leisure on the child support they would have to pay. Others would gladly concoct a story which could get them a large legal settlement. There is no shortage of depravity people engage in for money, nor is there a shortage of such people willing to engage in it.