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Tony Buzbee did not expect to be involved in a highly-publicized case with Shannon Sharpe, but when the opportunity came calling, he jumped on board.
The football Hall of Famer-turned-national television star was accused of assault, sexual assault, battery and sexual battery. He was also accused of engaging “in the intentional infliction of emotional distress,” and his accuser was seeking $50 million in damages.
The situation got ugly, with Sharpe calling the allegations a “shakedown,” while he and his legal team released sexually explicit messages that the woman had allegedly sent him.
The parties settled last month, and Buzbee said that “both sides acknowledge[d] a long-term consensual and tumultuous relationship.”
However, upon Sharpe being let go of ESPN as part of the case’s aftermath, Buzbee took one more half-hearted shot at the former tight end.
“I didn’t wake up one morning and say, ‘I want to sue Shannon Sharpe.’ He has no relevance in my life,” Buzbee told Esquire. “I actually think he’s very entertaining when he yells and screams and talks about sports that he’s not involved in. But if I think it’s a legitimate case, then I pursue it. And I think this is worth my time.”
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Buzbee represented two dozen of the women who accused Deshaun Watson of sexual assault, and all but one of those cases ended in a settlement. Buzbee also represented the woman who accused Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs of assault when she was just 13. Those charges were dropped, and Jay-Z is now suing a woman and Buzbee.
Sharpe accused Buzbee of targeting Black men, but Buzbee dismissed such a notion.
“I guess a bunch of old White men could say I’m targeting them, and a bunch of multinational corporations could say I’m targeting them as well … I guess you could say I was targeting BP,” he said, regarding his lawsuit against the oil company. “If I think it’s a legitimate case, then I pursue it.”
Sharpe said that he “really enjoyed” his abbreviated stint at ESPN, where he appeared on “First Take.”
“I really enjoyed my time at ESPN. It gave me an opportunity to bring my audience that saw me really just grow. They saw me, you know, ‘Lakers in 5’ and they saw me say all these funny, these analogies that my grandparents gave me. And I was able to bring that to ESPN, so I’m very, very grateful for that.”
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