Michael Irvin’s attorney has stuck to his word and released a video that he believes will exonerate his client from the sexual assault allegations made against him.
If you haven’t been paying attention, the week leading up to the 2023 Super Bowl has haunted NFL Hall of Famer Michael Irvin. He was pulled from ESPN and NFL Network’s Super Bowl coverage after he was accused of sexual assault by an unnamed female employee of the hotel where he was staying.
In response, Irvin made some accusations of his own, filing a $100 million defamation lawsuit in Texas, accusing the hotel of coming up with a method to make him the latest victim of “cancel culture” in an incident that he claims did not happen.
He even compared his current situation to a “modern-day lynching.”
Irvin has stood strong and held press conferences to publicize his stance and call eyewitnesses to the stand in the court of public opinion.
But, on Tuesday, Irvin and his attorney, Levin McCathern, held another press conference to announce that they were dropping the defamation lawsuit they filed in Texas and refiling in Arizona, according to the Dallas Morning News.
His attorney also held his promise and displayed the hotel footage that they believe will prove Irvin’s innocence.
Throughout the video, Irvin’s attorneys break down the footage like he’s a coach breaking down game film with a group of NFL players.
While there is no audio involved, the short video does show Irvin walking up to a female employee and greeting her. It also shows Irvin touching the employee’s arm a couple of times and the woman taking a few steps back. Before they go their separate ways, they shake hands.
The victim’s account of the events
Although Irvin’s attorneys think this footage will absolve their client, the hotel has its own version of what occurred that night and it doesn’t align with any of the claims Irvin’s team are making.
From the Dallas Morning News:
According to a Marriott court filing last Friday, the woman accuses Irvin of making a lewd comment, touching her without consent and saying that he would find her later in her work week. Specifically, Marriott described a drunk Irvin asking if she knew anything about having a “big Black man inside of [her].”
Irvin has denied all the claims made by the hotel and the victim, saying at Tuesday’s press conference, “I don’t speak like that. I’ve never spoken like that. I totally deny saying that. I totally deny saying that.”
The only question that lies is will the audio-less hotel footage be enough to get the legendary Dallas Cowboys wide receiver off the hook? Only time will tell.