Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson has scored a major victory in his ongoing sexual misconduct cases.
On Friday, after six hours of witness statements and evidence from prosecutors, a grand jury in Texas decided not to indict the NFL star for allegedly groping and sexually harassing nine massage therapists during private massage sessions. However, Watson still faces 22 civil lawsuits from women across multiple states for sexual misconduct.
Overcome with emotion, the 26-year-old spoke outside of the Harris County courthouse, where he expressed his extreme gratitude to his legal team and his “Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for letting the truth be heard.” One of his accusers previously shared that she second-guessed Watson’s perversion during the massage considering many viewed him as a “good guy.” However, that persona did not stop him from allegedly groping himself and putting his penis onto the therapists without consent. One accuser claimed he encouraged her to “grab it” if it got in her way.
“I’m gonna keep fighting to rebuild my name and rebuild my appearance in the community,” he stated. He also added that while he is looking forward to tying up the remaining legal loose ends, he is eager to return to the field.
Rusty Hardin, the lead attorney on Watson’s legal team, says they are “delighted” with the outcome and are ready to “vigorously defend” the pending civil lawsuits. He is also ready for the pro footballer to get on with his life.
“It is time to let Deshaun move on,” Hardin stated.
Watson has claimed all incidents were consensual, denying any wrongdoing since the accusations arose.
