Texans Subpoenaed for Records in Watson Case
Lawyers for the 22 women who accused former Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson of sexual assault and misconduct have subpoenaed the club for records, including nondisclosure agreements and correspondence relating to the allegations.
The subpoena was filed last Wednesday in Harris County District Court and asks for correspondence between Watson and Houston security staff, coaches and head trainer, according to Cleveland.com.
Watson’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, told Cleveland.com that he doesn’t think the Texans have any communication that would impact Watson’s case. Watson was traded last month to the Cleveland Browns.
“I’m not sure what it’s about, but I know they keep trying to draw the Texans into this, even though that has been disproven, under oath,” Hardin said. “I don’t think this is significant. [The Texans] had nothing to do with the massages, so other than that I’m not sure what this will do.”
The subpoena also requests communication between the team and two hotels – Houstonian and Home2Suites – where Watson met some of the women met for massages.
Among the records being sought by the women’s attorneys are correspondence between Watson and the team’s coaches regarding the accusations, portion of Watson’s contract that details what access he had to the training staff and records of any payments made by the team on Watson’s behalf from 2019-20 for physical therapy or massages, and copies of nondisclosure agreements made relating to the accusations.
Grand juries in Texas declined to indict Watson on criminal charges related to the allegations. The NFL has not ruled on any discipline for Watson. No trial dates have been set in any of the 22 civil cases.
After being traded to Cleveland, Watson signed a contract that guaranteed a record $230 million.
