Jason Friedman, who testified earlier than Congress final yr alleging monetary improprieties by the Washington Commandershas filed go well with in opposition to the group and one among its attorneys, John Brownlee, for defamation.
Friedman, who filed the 15-page go well with within the civil division of the Loudoun County District Courtroom on July 7, requested for $7.5 million in compensatory damages and one other $350,000 in punitive damages, along with charges incurred. He additionally requested for a jury trial.
The story was first reported by the Washington Publish.
The information got here out three days earlier than NFL house owners will collect in Minneapolis to vote on the sale of the Commanders from Dan and Tanya Snyder to a bunch led by Josh Harris. Homeowners are anticipated to approve the $6.05 billion sale, ending the Snyders’ 24-year reign.
On March 14, 2022 Friedman testified earlier than the Home Oversight Committee for its investigation into the Commanders’ work tradition underneath Snyder. Throughout his closed-door testimony, Friedman accused the group of monetary improprieties, which led the committee to ship a letter to the Federal Commerce Fee in regards to the allegations a month later.
The Commanders denied the allegations in a letter it despatched to the FTC. The letter included emails and texts from Friedman to membership officers.
The lawsuit acknowledged that “The Group responded to Mr. Friedman’s allegations of monetary improprieties by repeatedly and publicly calling him a liar, accusing him of committing the federal crime of perjury, and falsely implying that he was terminated as a part of the Group’s sexual harassment scandal that was being extensively reported within the press.”
The go well with additionally asserted that “The Group’s false statements about Mr. Friedman, which it has repeated or precipitated to be repeated in numerous public boards, have devastated him personally and professionally: [H]e suffers from extreme nervousness and melancholy, would require ongoing medical therapy, and has been unable to discover a comparable job as a result of Group’s deliberate and malicious destruction of his fame.”
The group and Brownlee had not but issued a press release in regards to the lawsuit.
Friedman labored for the group for twenty-four years in ticket gross sales, finally turning into its vp of gross sales and customer support. He was fired within the fall of 2020, shortly after Jason Wright took over as group president.
Friedman testified that the group had “knowingly and intentionally” withheld funds from season ticket holders safety deposits and that it mischaracterized income. In a press release, one among Friedman’s attorneys, Lisa Banks, stated, “Jason Friedman testified honestly earlier than Congress about his experiences with the Washington Commanders. In response to his testimony, the group and its lawyer tried to publicly destroy him by baselessly calling him a liar and questioning his ethical character. I’m assured that Mr. Friedman will likely be vindicated each by the NFL’s investigation and a courtroom of regulation.” As a result of he testified behind closed doorways, the go well with contends that Friedman was not a public determine. Shortly after the story broke about his testimony in 2022, the group launched a press release saying partially that “anybody who provided testimony suggesting a withholding of income has dedicated perjury, plain and easy.”
Friedman’s go well with additionally pointed to the letter Washington despatched to the FTC that talked about the “uncorroborated and implausible allegations of a single disgruntled former worker.”
Friedman’s attorneys additionally state within the lawsuit that Brownlee tried to tie him to the situations of sexual harassment within the group throughout his time with the franchise. The go well with pointed to a radio interview Brownlee did with 106.7 The Fan by which he stated Friedman turned the “very poisonous work surroundings that the group was attempting to rid itself [of].”
Washington has reached settlements with the legal professional normal workplaces of Maryland and the District of Columbia. Virginia’s legal professional normal has continued to analyze the allegations. The U.S. Legal professional’s workplace within the Japanese District of Virginia additionally opened an investigation into doable monetary improprieties by the Commanders.
Legal professional Mary Jo White is conducting an investigation into Snyder and the group. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has repeatedly stated he’ll launch her findings when it is executed.
Congress investigated Snyder and the Commanders for almost a yr earlier than Republicans received management of the Home and declined to pursue the matter additional.
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Printed : 2023-07-17 20:07:38
