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Just when Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson thought he was possibly in the clear, a 24th plaintiff has come forward with sexual assault allegations against him and these ones are more graphic and disturbing than ever. Perhaps the most concerning part for Watson however is that his legal team had essentially no response, simply saying “our legal team has not had time to investigate this new filing and had not heard her name until today.”
But, this 24th plaintiff could potentially be the one that results in the Browns cutting ties with Watson because, unlike the other plaintiffs which were simply referred to as Jane Doe, Watson's lawyers said this time they hadn't heard her name until Monday.
Mike Florio of PFT offers more insight on why this is a big deal:
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Hardin’s statement says only that they hadn’t heard the person’s name until Monday; it’s possible they knew, via aggressive questioning of their own client, Browns star Deshaun Watson, that there was a 24th interaction that could have resulted in a claim being made.
That’s important for multiple reasons. First, if this person whose name previously wasn’t known to Watson’s legal team now files a criminal complaint, the allegations could be submitted to another grand jury. And the graphic details contained in the 24th complaint, if repeated to a grand jury and accepted by the grand jury, could result in an indictment. (Although I’ve tried to avoid repeating the graphic details, the 24th plaintiff contends that, after trying to get the plaintiff to to touch his penis and asking her “where do you want me to put it?” he ejaculated — and “some of his ejaculate got on Plaintiff’s chest and face.”)
Second, if Watson eventually is suspended for the conduct alleged in the 24th lawsuit, the Browns possibly will be able to void his guarantees and move on from him, and possibly to recover a significant portion of his signing bonus.
Basically, if this whole situation goes to another grand jury and these graphic details are repeated, the new Browns signal-caller may be indicted. For Cleveland, this is already turning out to be an absolute disaster. It's clear he's going to face some suspensions and after the 24th woman has now come forward, the situation just got even more complicated. But, as Florio noted, the Browns could still save face and retain some of the money they gave Watson.
As for Deshaun Watson's future in the NFL, it's looking murkier each and every day.
