Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson has come to settlement agreements with 20 women who alleged sexual misconduct against him during massage sessions in 2020 and 2021, USA Today reported Tuesday.
The settlements were announced by Tony Buzbee, attorney for those women.
“Today I announce that all cases against Deshaun Watson, with the exception of four, have settled,” Buzbee said in a statement. “We are working through the paperwork related to those settlements. Once we have done so, those particular cases will be dismissed. The terms and amounts of the settlements are confidential. We won’t comment further on the settlements or those cases.”
According to the USA Today report, one of those who has not settled is Ashley Solis, who was the first to come forward with allegations against the then-Houston Texans quarterback.
“The cases against Deshaun Watson started with one phone call, from one brave and strong woman,” Buzbee stated. “That woman was Ashley Solis. At the time of that call she was just one of the hundreds of calls seeking legal assistance that our firm gets weekly. Even though she was originally turned away by our screening process, my staff insisted that I personally speak with her. I’m glad she persisted. Once we took a second look, and after having contact with Watson’s original lawyer who disrespected Ashley and her profession and who arrogantly minimized the conduct of someone he referred to as an ‘asset,’ I was convinced that our law firm should try to help her.
Watson remains under investigation by the NFL for his actions. The league has yet to announce a decision regarding potential discipline for violating the NFL’s personal conduct rules.
Watson, 26, never was arrested or charged after two grand juries in Texas declined to indict him. There could have been several reasons the grand juries chose not to indict him, including a lack of hard evidence in these cases individually when Watson’s word was pitted against those of the women. Only one of the criminal complainants was called in to testify at the Harris County grand jury proceeding in March even though other complainants there were subpoenaed and ready to testify, Buzbee told USA TODAY Sports previously.
The alleged actions took place while Watson was a Texans quarterback. He has since been traded to the Cleveland Browns, who signed him to a $230 million contract that included $1 million in salary for 2022. The belief is that the low salary for this season would be to prevent Watson from losing too much money should the NFL decide to suspend him.
The terms of the contract have brought the Browns’ moral compass into question. How these settlements plays into the NFL’s eventual decision is uncertain.
