HOUSTON – Deshaun Watson’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, filed a motion for an emergency hearing on Thursday asking a judge to rule that attorney Tony Buzbee must identify one of the women who filed a lawsuit under the pseudonym Jane Doe.
That motion was approved by the Harris County District Court, with the hearing scheduled for Friday at 12 p.m. ET. Hardin plans to file for each of the plaintiffs on the same Thursday.
Of the 22 civil lawsuits filed against Watson for alleged inappropriate behavior and sexual assault, only two women have been publicly identified. The motion filed Thursday relates to lawsuit 2021-15937, which was filed March 18. Because these lawsuits were filed separately, Hardin would have to file a motion for each of the lawsuits filed.
Watson has denied the allegations in the lawsuits.
“When we asked Mr. Buzbee weeks ago to identify his clients, he declined and said we should file a motion,” Hardin said in a statement. Today we filed that motion. As discussed in our filing, Mr. Buzbee’s use of anonymous lawsuits violates Texas law and the basic concept of fairness.
While I understand that anonymity is often used as a shield for victims, Mr. Buzbee uses it like a sword. While protecting his clients from public scrutiny, Mr. Buzbee continues to use their anonymous accusations to destroy Mr. Watson. we look forward to resolving these cases in court. “
In the motion, Hardin writes that “because the prosecution’s attorney filed the claims anonymously, Mr. Watson’s attorney can only speculate on the prosecution’s identity.”
“Counsel for Mr. Watson cannot respond publicly in good conscience to the specific allegations being made, as any response would be based on dangerous speculation about the identity of the prosecutors,” Hardin said in the motion. “It is easy to imagine what harm would be caused if Ms. Doe were wrongly identified.
“The only way Mr. Watson can make a good defense is for the Court to follow the law by requiring Mrs. Doe to identify herself in her civil suit.”
The motion for the emergency hearing is because Watson’s response to the lawsuit is due on April 19, and because Mr. Watson cannot fully assess Ms. Doe’s real name or argues his defense against her allegations. “
In a statement Tuesday, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy called the allegations against Watson “very disturbing” and noted that “we take these issues very seriously.”
McCarthy said the league launched an investigation last month following initial allegations as part of its personal conduct policy and that the NFL “continues to monitor closely all developments in the case.”