Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson admitted in pre-trial deposition last week that one of his disputed meetings with a massage therapist ended with the woman crying, followed by an apology texted by Watson, according to the woman’s attorney.
This verifies some of the women’s claims against him and raises the question of what made him cry when they met. In his deposition, Watson said he didn’t know, according to attorney Tony Buzbee. The woman is suing Watson for civil assault and claims in her lawsuit that Watson deliberately touched her with his penis during the massage, which scared her and cried.
Watson left and texted her apologetically afterwards: “Sorry you felt uncomfortable,” he wrote, according to a screenshot previously posted by his lawyers. “The intentions were never. Lmk if you want to work in the future. My excuses.”
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Last week’s deposition was taken on behalf of therapist, Ashley Solis, the first of 22 women who sued Watson and accused him of similar sexual misconduct during massage sessions from early 2020 to March 2021. meeting with Solis took place on March 30. 2020, at his Houston-area home.
“But do you know why you sent that apology text afterwards?” Buzbee asked Watson during deposition last week, according to a partial transcript obtained by USA TODAY Sports.
“Yeah, because she had tears in her eyes,” Watson replied. “And I was trying to figure out what was going on. So, I assumed she was uncomfortable for some reason. And we talked about working in the future. And so, I said, ‘We can work in the future. Let me know. And then I sent my apologies for why she had tears in her eyes.
Solis did not respond to Watson’s text, according to his lawsuit.
Watson has further pretrial depositions scheduled for June, but is not expected to go on trial with any of those lawsuits until February, according to an agreement between plaintiffs and defense attorneys. He denied wrongdoing. His attorney, Rusty Hardin, did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
The NFL has investigated the matter and may suspend him for violating its personal conduct policy. He was due to meet Watson this week.
Watson, 26, has not been arrested or charged in the cases. Two Texas grand juries considered criminal complaints against him, but declined to indict him on criminal charges. He was recently traded by the Texans from Houston to Cleveland, earning him a record-breaking $230 million contract guaranteed over five seasons.
Follow journalist Brent Schrotenboer @Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com