NFL Hall of Fame Shannon Sharpe accused of rape and sexual assault in a bombshell lawsuit.
According to court documents filed in Nevada on April 20. NBC Sportsa woman identified as “Jane Doy” accused Sharp of sexual assaulting her multiple times and verbally threatening her. Sharp strongly denies the allegations, saying lawyers representing Jane Doe are “deceptions” Tony Buzbee. The athlete later eliminated what Jane Doe had called in a video statement.
Sharp’s lawyer has admitted that he had previously tried to address Jane Doe’s claims for “at least $10 million” but she rejected his meditation proposal.
On July 19, Jane Doe’s lawyers went to US Weekly Sharpe and his accusers have settled legal disputes in court.
“On April 20, 2025, Buzzby Law Firm filed a complaint in Nevada, filing some charges against Shannon Sharpe on behalf of our clients.” Buzbee said at the time. “Both sides acknowledge a long-term consensus and a turbulent relationship. After the lasting and respectful negotiations, I am pleased to announce that we have reached a common consensus solution. Now all issues have been resolved satisfactorily, the issue has been closed and the lawsuit will be dismissed.
Keep scrolling to learn everything about the lawsuit, the allegations against Sharp, his denials and solutions.
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Julia Beverly/Getty Imageslitigation
In a $50 million lawsuit filed in Nevada on April 20, Sharp was charged with causing assault, sexual assault, assault and sexual assault on an unidentified woman.
In court documents NBC SportsJane Doe claims she met Sharpe at a gym in Los Angeles when she was 20, when he was 50. Jane Doe recalls in the lawsuit that her first encounter with Sharpe involved athletes and if she won a weight loss contest, it involved “buying her fake t**s.”
According to Jane Doe, there was a “rock consensus relationship” between the two for two years, despite her claim that Sharp caused intentional emotional distress. In a series of charges, Jane Doe accused Sharpe of sometimes recording their sexual activity without her consent and then showing footage to others.
The woman also accused Sharp of becoming more controlled in the last few months together, including allegedly saying to her, “I will kill you” when he noticed her attempt to share her location with friends out of attention.
Her court documents mention Jane Doe attempted to evacuate from Sharpe after accidentally having sex with another woman on Instagram in September 2024.
Sharpe allegedly faced with Jane Doe after he began ignoring his phone call, resulting in a forced incident of sexual acts without her October 2024 consent. The woman reported in court that Sharpe allegedly raped her again in January 2025 without wearing a condom.
Her 13-page complaint says: “A woman can say ‘yes’ 99 times to a sexual relationship with a man, but when she says ‘no’ or even once, “no” means no. Defendant Shannon Sharpe, a man used to getting what she wants, has no understanding of this basic concept at all.
After months of manipulation and control of the plaintiff (a woman thirty years younger than him) and repeatedly threatening to choke and slap her violently, Sharp refuses to accept the answer, even though she is crying and screaming repeatedly, otherwise ”No.
Shannon Sharpe’s response
Sharp’s lawyer, Lanny J. Davis,Tell US Weekly On Monday, April 21, Jane Doe’s lawsuit “was full of lies, twists and false statements that will not succeed.” He accused the woman of trying to “blatantly and cynical attempts to beat Mr. Sharp for millions of dollars.”
Through his attorney, Sharp denied all charges in the lawsuit, including the lies of “rape”.”
“He firmly upholds the truth and is ready to fight actively in court,” Davis said in a statement. “He looks forward to defending through due process and judgments based on facts and law.”
“It’s a voluntary relationship that includes role-playing, sexual language and fantasy scenes,” Davis said.
Attorney Tony Buzbee claims Jay-Z accused the rapper of raping a 13-year-old girl in 2000 after filing a civil lawsuit. […]
Sharp then released his video statement on Tuesday, April 22, in which he regarded Jane Doe’s lawsuit as “shakedown.”
“I’m going to stay open, transparent and defend myself because that’s not right,” he said via Instagram.
Sharpe accused Jane Doe’s attorney Buzbee of plotting a lawsuit as an attack on “black people” after he had litigated with Jay-Z and Diddy.
“I believe he’s going to release a 30-second sex tape trying to make me look introvert and play every stereotype you might imagine,” he said. “The video should actually be about ten minutes. Hey, Tony, instead of posting your edit, just put the whole video out. I didn’t, or I would myself. You know what’s going on, you’re trying to manipulate the media.”
Sharpe stood out in the controversial video statement, accusing her of “intentionally setting up.”
“What did they get 1752985361 Sharp threatened: “Being prosecuted was for slander and trying to disappoint me. My career is true conversation and honesty. I know my family and fans know exactly what this means, and I’ll be there to tell you everything I need to say, like I’ve always been. I love you guys.”
according to NBC SportsDavis later confirmed at a press conference that Sharp planned to “counterclaim” the woman. The lawyer also admitted that Sharp had previously offered “at least $10 million” to resolve the matter, and then she rejected the offer before Jane Doe filed a lawsuit.
Buzbee insisted on Tuesday that Sharp “violated” a confidentiality agreement, and he asked women to sign when he briefly entered the mediation process.
“On the one hand, Mr. Sharp and his attorneys claimed that the case filed by Jane Doe was useful, but on the other hand, they have now revealed that Mr. Sharp gave Jane Doe $10 million in writing in writing, not filing a lawsuit. This is a true statement,” Buzbee wrote via Instagram. “In fact, Jane Doe offered $10 million to resolve it, but rejected the offer and chose to continue the lawsuit. Sharpe’s team is now trying to discredit and dox her. Sharpe and his team are now attacking me as expected. We won’t be stopped by these strategies.”
The woman’s legal team then issued a phone call between the plaintiff and Sharp, who allegedly threatened to “cho”. [her] In public. “Sharp’s representative questioned the authenticity of all recordings released by lawyer Jane Doe.
reaction
Sharp’s ESPN takes first Same host, Stephen Smithon Tuesday’s “Stephen A. Smith Show” podcast, talking about “Shannon Sharpe’s Situation”, calling the lawsuit a “tragic situation.”
“We have grown into friends. Of course I took root for him. I know he’s been through a lot of life, he’s overcoming a lot of things, and when he left Fox, I’d love to bring him here,” he said. “So all I can talk about is what I know, I can talk about ESPN and Disney.”
Smith says he is “full of hope and prayer [Sharpe is] Totally innocent. ” Reiterate that his friends and colleagues have denied all the charges.
“On the one hand, I fully understand what Shannon Sharpe comes from,” he said. “On the other hand, when his legal team posted a press release on X yesterday, they mentioned her name and revealed some uncomfortable clear text messages, I don’t know if that works.”
Smith continued: “One of the hardest things we all have to do in the world is to lower it, keep it quiet and let our legal team get our legal team to do it. We? I want to tell you I know the answer to this question, but I don’t know.”
Solution
Sharpe and Doe settled the lawsuit on July 18, according to lawyers for unidentified women. Sharp is accused of Of Aggression, sexual assault, assault and sexual assault on unidentified women, they also said the couple had a “rock-voluntary relationship.”
“On April 20, 2025, Buzzby Law Firm filed a complaint in Nevada, and filed some charges against Shannon Sharpe on behalf of our clients,” he said. us Read at that time. “Both sides acknowledge a long-term consensus and a turbulent relationship. After the lasting and respectful negotiations, I am pleased to announce that we have reached a common consensus solution. Now all issues have been resolved satisfactorily, the issue has been closed and the lawsuit will be dismissed.
Sharp denied all charges against him. No details of the settlement were released to the public at that time.
Updated – ET :: 4/25/25, 3:30 PM Other allegations about Sharp’s previous actions have been exposed in the days after the lawsuit was filed.
Accused of suffocating female colleague during FS1
Sharp was reportedly charged with misconduct with colleagues while he was a colleague at FS1, ahead of a $50 million sexual assault and rape lawsuit. Undisputed.
According to Thursday, April 24, Sharpe stifled a female production assistant while working on the show. Media claims they spoke with “sources with two kinds of knowledge.”
A Sharp allegedly reached an undisclosed settlement with the unnamed plaintiff. No lawsuit was filed at that time.
A spokesperson for Sharp told US Weekly Thursday, April 24. “Once, he and some colleagues were involved in some light body interactions in the background of playfulness. Fox Sports later chose to resolve the matter privately.”
Woman accuses Sharp of sexual assault in defamation lawsuit
A woman named Michele Evans, who claimed to have been in a nearly ten-year relationship with Sharpe, filed a lawsuit against Sharpe in 2023, claiming he sexually assaulted her in 2010.
“The defendant continued to force me to subdue me, force me to bend my knees, and then engage in involuntary oral penetration.” people. “Despite my protest, he insisted on this violation.”
Evans did not sue Sharpe for sexual assault, but she said the consequences of the incident were “full of defamatory comments and earned my professional reputation.”
In a statement US Weekly On Friday, April 25, Sharp’s lawyer denied the allegations.
“Sadly, Ms. Evans was obsessed with Shannon and decided to file a claim against him,” the statement said. “When she couldn’t find a lawyer to pursue her outrageous story, she filed a civil complaint alone, which had no merit at all.”
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
