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On February 9, Michael Irvin filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit in Collin County (Texas) court against Marriott International and a female employee who accused him of misconduct.
After a “Jane Doe” (as described in the lawsuit) complained about an interaction she had with Irvin on Sunday, February 5, witnesses and video have since emerged to defend the Hall of Fame receiver.
Yet, her allegations alone had Michael Irvin removed from the NFL Network and ESPN during football’s biggest week of the year.
Michael Irvin is backed by witnesses at the scene
The all-time great Dallas Cowboy told the Dallas Morning News on Wednesday that he had a brief interaction with his accuser in the lobby of the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel where he was staying Sunday.
Vigorously maintaining his innocence, Irvin’s lawsuit reads in part, “Rash and thoughtless actions can have severe consequences. Marriott [parent company of Renaissance Hotels] apparently did not appreciate these simple truths when, in a rush to judgment, its employees and management inaccurately and inflammatorily accused Mr. Irvin of misconduct to the National Football League.”
According to the lawsuit, witnesses (in the above photo) backed Irvin’s initial claim that he “casually exchanged pleasantries” with the employee (“Jane Doe”), “shook her hand, and went to his room alone.”
TMZ interviewed a pair of people who say they were present when Irvin’s supposed inappropriate conduct on Sunday at an Arizona hotel occurred – or, rather, they say, did not occur.
Said one: Irvin and an unnamed female had “a positive, friendly conversation. They had a brief interaction, it was 30, 40 seconds, he kept his distance at all times, stood about a meter away from her, they ended with a handshake and he literally turned around and went to the lift.”
A witness and Irvin have both claimed to be “baffled” by the allegations which instantaneously snatched him off the Super Bowl air.
Per the lawsuit that was obtained by the Dallas News, Irvin accuses Marriott of trying to have him “canceled.” Irvin seeks damages for defamation and wrongfully interfering with a business relationship.
The nature of the the allegation is unclear. Phoenix police told the News on Wednesday that there has been no criminal complaint filed against Michael Irvin.