Professional Football Hall of Fame and ESPN analyst Shannon Sharp faces a $50 million civil lawsuit he accuses of sexual assault, battery and emotional abuse. The plaintiff, known in court documents as “Jane Doe,” alleges that during the two-year “rocky consensus relationship,” Sharp raped her twice, documenting her sexual encounters without consent, and threatened her.
In an audio clip released to the media by the plaintiff’s lawyer, the woman says, “Don’t manipulate me.” Sharp replies, “Oh, the Lord has mercy. After that, the woman responds seriously, “I don’t want to suffocate.”
Sharpe vehemently denied the allegations, claiming that Clip was intentionally edited and misrepresented a consensual interaction.
In a recent official statement, he called the lawsuit a “shakedown,” identifying the plaintiff as the sole fan model, Gabriella “Gabbi” Zuniga, claiming “everything is organized by Tony Buzby.”
“Tony Busby is targeting black men. I think he’ll release a 30-second clip of a sex tape that tries to make me look guilty and play with every stereotype you can imagine,” Sharp said.
He went on to claim that the sex tape was actually “10 minutes” and that the encounter took place “at her invitation.” He accused Gabbie of coordinating a “deliberate setup” and encouraging Buzbee to file a lawsuit in a defamous countersuit to edit the video and “manipulate the media.”
Jason Whitlock and “fearless” guest Shemeka Michel jump into the scandal.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhe4tgxp_eg
Jason believes Sharp’s public persona is a key factor in this controversy. He puts two together and two together. If the phone agreed, as Sharp did, the threat of choking must have meant that he was playing the character, as he often does on television.
“In many cases, characters are out of control and take on a life of their own that falls into many trouble,” says Jason.
“It’s not the first time I’ve heard of a woman – young women – [she was] I suffocated by Shannon Sharp,” he added, noting that he worked with Sharp at Fox Sports several years ago.
But that doesn’t mean he’s in Team Gabby. Tony Buzbee’s lawsuit records include names of famous black men, including Jay-Z, Sean “Diddy” Combs and Deshaun Watson.
But Jason doesn’t think Buzby will just “get black men.” What he actually does is “make a woman’s bid,” he says.
Shemekh acknowledges and agrees that it is true that women engage in these relationships with celebrities for the explicit purpose of women becoming rich.
“I’m going to be one of these people and wait to see what information comes up,” she says. It states that if the full context of the phone between Gabby and Sharp is released, it can very well prove that the exchange is part of a role-playing game.
Even if that’s true, Jason believes Sharp should know better.
“You play stupid games and win stupid prizes,” he says.
To hear more about the conversation and see footage of Sharpe’s official statement, see the clip above.
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