Michael Irvin Accused Of Rape

Michael Irvin Accused Of Rape At Florida Hotel


A woman who claimed she was raped 2-1/2 years ago by Cowboys Hall of Famer and NFL Network analyst Michael Irvin filed a civil suit against him Thursday, according to the Miami Herald.

According to Broward (Fla.) State Attorney spokesman Ron Ishoy, the office has looked into the case and is expected to reach a conclusion next week.

No criminal charges have been filed.

According to the suit, the woman (referred to as Jane Doe), says the attack happened in the late hours of July 4 or early July 5 in 2007 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla.

Irvin's lawyer, Larry Friedman, called the accusations "totally untrue."

According to Seminole Tribe spokesman Gary Bitner, the alleged assault was reported to Seminole police on July 20, 2007.

"They investigated it thoroughly," Bitner said. "Although by that time there was no longer any forensic evidence or surveillance video."

David Lister, the woman's attorney, told the Herald his client and Irvin's counsel had been in negotiations for a financial settlement, but those talks stalled, prompting the lawsuit.

"There were discussion back and forth between the parties," Lister said, adding that Irvin's representatives had asked for a settlement figure. "Nothing came of it."

Friedman called the discussions attempts at extortion.

According to the report, Friedman said the woman came forward last year, after Irvin had appeared on a few episodes of the television show "Dancing With the Stars."

Irvin grew up in Fort Lauderdale and was a star wide receiver at the University of Miami before his Hall of Fame career with the Cowboys.

In 1996 he pleaded no contest to a cocaine charge and later that same year, Irvin and a teammate were accused of sexually assaulting a woman, but an investigation revealed the woman had made up the story. She soon recanted.


Sources: NY Daily News