Judge rules Deshaun Watson must answer about any sex history with other therapists
NFL quarterback Deshaun Watson now will have to answer whether he had sex with 18 additional therapists who came to his defense about his massage habits last year, according to a ruling Tuesday by a Texas judge.
Watson is being sued by 22 other women who accused him of sexual misconduct during massage sessions in 2020 and early 2021. As part of the pretrial discovery process in those lawsuits, their attorneys have sought to have Watson answer written “requests for admission” about whether he had sex with the 18 therapists who publicly supported him after the lawsuits against him started in March 2021.
Watson, who recently was traded to the Cleveland Browns, previously refused to answer these questions, saying it was harassing, private and not relevant, according to an objection filed by his attorneys in court.
motives in seeking massages with dozens of different women, many of whom he met on social media. They asked the court to compel him to answer, leading to a hearing in court Tuesday between the two sides.
Harris County District Court Judge Rabeea Sultan Collier decided in favor of the plaintiffs, overruling the objection by Watson’s attorney, Leah Graham.
two grand juries in Texas declined to indict Watson on criminal charges in those cases. But the 22 civil lawsuits are proceeding and might not go to trial until next year.
Watson recently said he never assaulted, harassed or disrespected any women after agreeing to a record-setting contract with the Browns that will pay him $230 million guaranteed over five years. Hardin, his attorney, last year said a big reason Watson saw so many different women for massages was because “spas shut down” in 2020 amid the pandemic.
Buzbee told USA TODAY Sports last week that this explanation recently didn’t hold up in his pretrial questioning of Watson.
“He couldn’t say any place was shut down because of COVID,” Buzbee said. “He didn’t reach out to any place that shut down. He didn’t even ask.”
Hardin said the women suing his client are lying and out for money but that there were “sometimes consensual encounters.”
Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. E-mail: bschrotenb@usatoday.com