Report: Antonio Brown's rape accuser seeks additional damages in civil trial
Days after his return to the football field, Antonio Brown is facing an escalation in the civil rape case against him.
Britney Taylor, the woman who accused Brown of multiple instances of rape and sexual assault, is now seeking punitive damages in a civil case filed in Florida, Pro Football Talk reports. Taylor filed a motion Tuesday seeking permission to amend her complaint to seek the additional damages, according to the report.
The initial complaint strictly sought compensatory damages, which are intended to compensate a victim for what he or she lost. Punitive damages seek to punish the accused and act as a deterrent for potential offenders. They can be well in excess of compensatory damages awarded.
It is now up to a judge whether to allow Taylor to amend her complaint.
What is Brown accused of?
Taylor, Brown’s former trainer, accused him last September of three separate instances of sexual assault. Brown is not criminally charged in the case. The incidents allegedly happened in 2017 and 2018.
Brown is accused of exposing himself to Taylor and kissing her without consent during a training visit in his Pittsburgh home in the first incident.
In the second incident, he allegedly masturbated behind her while the two were watching a church service on a tablet in his Miami home and ejaculated on her back. According to the filing, Taylor cut off contact with Brown but reconnected with him after he vowed to halt the alleged sexual advances.
The lawsuit alleges that in May 2018 — after that agreement — Brown pushed Taylor face first into a mattress and “forcibly” raped her in his Miami home after a night out with friends. She screamed “no” and “stop,” but Brown ignored her pleas and penetrated her, according to the lawsuit.
Brown was a member of the New England Patriots when the lawsuit was filed. He had just played his first and last game with the team that released him amid the allegations.
Brown back after suspension for separate incident
Brown did not return to the football field in 2019 and served an eight-game ban from the NFL this season after he pleaded no contest to battery and burglary charges in an unrelated incident involving a moving truck driver.
Brown signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as his suspension reached its conclusion and made his debut with the Bucs last week, catching three passes for 31 yards in a 38-3 loss to the New Orleans Saints.
The civil trial was slated to start Dec. 14, but Taylor requested on Friday to delay the trial date, which could push it beyond the end of the NFL season, according to The Athletic.
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