OT: Shannon Sharpe accused of rape and sexual assault in $50 million dollar lawsuit

[Ronin]

Hall of Fame TE and ESPN analyst Shannon Sharpe accused of rape and sexual assault in $50M lawsuit

Shannon Sharpe signed a multi-year extension with ESPN in 2024.

sports.yahoo.com

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Shannon Sharpe Admits Offering $10M To Settle Rape Claims, Now Calls $50M Lawsuit “A Shakedown”

Shannon Sharpe Admits Offering $10M To Settle Rape Claims, Now Calls $50M Lawsuit “A Shakedown”

The ESPN host says the allegations of rape are false, but only today did Shannon Sharpe's lawyers reveal a $10M deal was on the table to make the whole thing go away

deadline.com

Both lawyers for Shannon Sharpe and his rape accuser confirm the First Take co-host earlier this year offered to pay $10 million to make the allegations go away, yet the former NFL player also says today the whole thing is just “a shakedown.”

Perhaps, but it also seems to be a contradiction in terms – to put it politely.

In an extremely graphic lawsuit filed in Nevada on April 20, Jane Doe claims the 56-year-old Sharpe sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions during a relationship they had that started in an LA gym in 2023. Alleging assault, sexual assault, battery and sexual battery, as well as intentional infliction of emotional distress, the plaintiff is represented by Houston-based Tony Buzbee, who is behind dozens of assault and abuse lawsuits against Sean “Diddy” Combs.

No stranger to controversy himself, and currently in a bitter battle with Jay-Z over a now dismissed rape case involving the ’99 Problems’ rapper and Combs, Buzbee took to social media Tuesday to get very specific on his client’s behalf as NFL vet Sharpe and his team attacked her credibility.

“On the one hand Mr. Sharpe and his lawyers claim that the case filed by Jane Doe is meritless, yet on the other hand they now have disclosed that Mr. Sharpe offered Jane Doe $10 million in writing not to file her lawsuit,” Buzbee said on Instagram this afternoon. “That is a true statement. Jane Doe was in fact offered $10 million to settle but rejected that offer, choosing instead to proceed with litigation. Sharpe’s team is now trying to discredit and dox her. Sharpe and his team are now, as anticipated, also attacking me. We are not going to be deterred by these tactics.”

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Gabriella Zuniga’s lawyer releases new alleged text messages from Shannon Sharpe

Gabriella Zuniga's lawyer releases new alleged text messages from Shannon Sharpe

Lawyers for both Shannon Sharpe and Gabriella Zuniga have been releasing text messages that were exchanged between the two over the past several months,

larrybrownsports.com

 

[jf-08]

Ooof. No means no even if she is an OF content creator, but the sniff test is a little suspect.

Spoiler: R Rated

Other text messages show Zuniga telling Sharpe she wants to be “abused” and for Sharpe to “put a dog collar around my neck and choke me with it.” Sharpe’s attorney Lanny J. Davis told TMZ that he believes Zuniga shifted her demeanor toward Sharpe when Sharpe indicated he did not want to have a child with Zuniga. Sharpe’s lawyers believe that is when Zuniga decided she was going to attempt to blackmail Sharpe.

Spoiler: R Rated

Shannon Sharpe Accuser Confronted Him Over Alleged Rape, 'No Means No'

Shannon Sharpe's accuser confronted him over the alleged January 2025 sexual assault ... with a newly released text message showing the woman told him, "no means no shannon."

www.tmz.com

From TMZ:

The texts were released to TMZ Sports along with hundreds of others on Tuesday afternoon. Most of the messages show what appears to be a kinky, consensual relationship between the two.

In one, which Doe sent to Sharpe in June 2024, she says, "I wanna be abused daddy." In another, sent in July 2024, she writes, "I want u to tie me up like this and abuse me daddy." In a third, dated Jan. 31, 2024, she requests "some hardcore **** action" from the Pro Football Hall of Famer.

 

[Shane]

Abused and sexually assaulted but kept going back??? Seems pretty suspect, especially when you throw in her multiple requests via text message to literally be abused…

 

[Ronin]

Shannon Sharpe stepping away from ESPN amid $50 million sexual assault lawsuit, new allegations of incident at FS1

In a statement Thursday, Sharpe called the allegations in the lawsuit 'false and disruptive' and added that he plans to return to ESPN ahead of the NFL preseason.

sports.yahoo.com