Nearly a year after allegations of sexual misconduct against Deshaun Watson were first publicized, several women who filed criminal complaints against him have been subpoenaed to appear before a grand jury on Friday, according to their lawyer, Tony Buzbee.
Ten women filed criminal complaints against Watson, the Houston Texans quarterback, last year, accusing him of sexual misconduct during massage sessions, according to Houston police records. The complaints released to the public were heavily redacted but listed acts ranging from Watson exposing himself, touching therapists’ hands with his penis and ejaculating on them. Three of the complaints allege sexual assault or attempted sexual assault, defined in Texas as nonconsensual penetration. Prosecutors are expected to present at least some of these cases to the grand jury, which will decide if criminal charges will be brought against Watson.
Search warrants issued in October in connection with the Houston police investigation, seeking access to the social media and Cash App accounts police said Watson used to book and pay for massages, named indecent assault as the crime being investigated. Indecent assault is a class A misdemeanor in Texas, punishable by up to one year in jail and a maximum fine of $4,000, while sexual assault is a second-degree felony.
Watson has denied any wrongdoing, and it is possible the grand jury will decide not to indict him for any crime. Rusty Hardin, Watson’s lawyer, said on Tuesday that he was “delighted” that the grand jury was going to meet because those matters have been looming over Watson for much too long already. He’s hoping that the grand jury will make a decision about Watson on Friday.