NFL star Michael Irvin's $100 mn lawsuit: Marriott International disputes claims

Marriott International has finally given its side of the story after former NFL star and Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Irvin sued the hotel chain for $100 million in damages. The lawsuit comes after a female hotel employee accused Irvin of making "harassing and inappropriate comments" in the lobby of the Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel on February 5, just days before the Super Bowl.

According to Marriott, Irvin was visibly intoxicated and aggressive toward the employee that night, repeatedly shaking her hand, commenting on her appearance, and asking if she watched football. He also allegedly touched her arm without her consent and asked if she had ever been with a "big Black man."

Marriott further claimed that two hotel employees noticed the woman was uncomfortable when she returned to work the next day, and she reported the incident to her manager, who told her to take the complaint to Loss Prevention. The woman was later interviewed by NFL investigators.

Irvin denied the allegations and proclaimed his innocence in a press conference in March. He also made racially charged statements that Marriott criticized in its filing. Irvin's attorney, Levi McCathern, dismissed Marriott's account as "total hogwash" and claimed that the hotel chain's position was an insult to all "true female victims."

A federal judge had ordered Marriott to turn over video footage of the encounter, and the hotel chain initially provided a video with the accuser's face blurred out. However, the judge ruled that Marriott "blatantly" violated the previous order and ordered the hotel chain to send Irvin's representation an unredacted version of the video.

The woman has been identified as "victim" in the recent filing and "Jane Doe" in previous motions. There has been no criminal complaint made against Irvin related to the encounter.

Irvin's reputation has taken a hit following the woman's allegations, and he reportedly lost money in the form of canceled appearances. The former Dallas Cowboys star told the Dallas Morning News shortly after the incident that he had a brief encounter with the woman in the hotel lobby and that he was "baffled" by the accusations.

The case is ongoing, and the release of the unredacted video footage could shed more light on what happened that night.

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