Ex-LSU gymnast files lawsuit accusing NFL star Antonio Brown of rape; he strongly denies - The Advocate
Ex-LSU gymnast files lawsuit accusing NFL star Antonio Brown of rape; he strongly denies - The Advocate |
- Ex-LSU gymnast files lawsuit accusing NFL star Antonio Brown of rape; he strongly denies - The Advocate
- Natural Light lands helicopter at wine event as seltzer sales fizz over - Marketing Dive
- Jennifer Dulos’ medical records could ‘shed light’ on disappearance, attorney claims - The Advocate
- Family suspects foul play in disappearance of Bullhead City woman - AZCentral
| Posted: 10 Sep 2019 07:28 PM PDT A former LSU gymnast on Tuesday filed a federal civil lawsuit accusing National Football League star Antonio Brown of raping her while she worked as his personal trainer, according to court records. Britney Taylor — who spent her junior and senior seasons as a college gymnast at LSU — claims that Brown owes her compensation for physical injuries, emotional pain and suffering, among other damages. Brown's attorney, Darren Heitner, issued a statement vehemently denying Taylor's allegations, arguing that a physical relationship that took place between his client and her was "entirely consensual." Heitner said Taylor's lawsuit comes after she unsuccessfully requested a $1.6 million investment from Brown. "Antonio Brown will leave no stone unturned and will aggressively defend himself, including exercising all of his rights in countersuits," Heitner's statement said. It is not clear if Taylor has reported her claims to law enforcement authorities, said the New York Times, which first reported on her lawsuit filed in the federal courthouse in Miami, where Brown is a resident. According to her suit, Taylor, now 28, met Brown during her freshman year in 2010 at Central Michigan University while both were students there. They were paired up as partners in Bible study and kept in touch while she went to LSU in 2012 and 2013 for her final two years in college, while Brown embarked on a career as an NFL wide receiver. Taylor — who described opening a gymnastics training center in Memphis after leaving LSU — said she and Brown lost touch until the summer of 2017, when he contacted her on Facebook and asked for help improving his flexibility and strength. She agreed and began flying to train Brown in Pittsburgh and Miami, places where he had homes. She alleged that he exposed himself and kissed her without her consent while she stayed with him in Pittsburgh; she alleges she pushed him away because she was in a relationship with another man. Though she "had no interest in a sexual relationship with Brown," she wanted the professional training arrangement to remain and therefore went to his home in Miami. There, she alleges, she was watching a church service with him on a computer tablet when he fondled himself behind her. Taylor's lawsuit contains profane emails that she says are from Brown, reference that incident, and discuss how he would laugh about it with a friend. Taylor said Brown apologized to her in March 2018, and that she agreed to work with him again on the condition that he "stop flirting with her." Aside from training him, she was handling his schedule, booking his flights and occasionally babysitting his children when she drove him and another unidentified NFL player home after a night of clubbing in May of that year. Taylor described going into Brown's home to use the restroom and grab some food from the kitchen before he pulled her into his bedroom under the guise of a chat. A few minutes later, the lawsuit alleges, he pinned her down against his mattress and raped her, overcoming her attempts to resist. She said she decided to retain legal counsel after seeking guidance with a leader at her church who is also a former assistant district attorney and sex crimes prosecutor. She said she took a polygraph test that confirmed her account as truthful. The Advocate doesn't typically identify sexual abuse victims. But Taylor's lawsuit and media stories on her case included her identity, and she issued a public statement through her attorney, David Haas, with her name attached to it. The lawsuit against Brown, 31, came days after he signed with the defending Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots, on a one-year contract worth $10.5 million. He spent the offseason with the Oakland Raiders but was released after he clashed with head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Mike Mayock. Before that, he had spent nine years with the Pittsburgh Steelers, earning First Team All-Pro honors four times. It was not immediately clear whether Brown could be subject to NFL discipline through the league's personal conduct policy. Taylor's statement indicated that she would cooperate with any NFL investigation.  |
| Natural Light lands helicopter at wine event as seltzer sales fizz over - Marketing Dive Posted: 10 Sep 2019 07:40 AM PDT  Dive Brief:
Dive Insight:For those who remember the Cola Wars — which recently heated up again — here comes the Seltzer War, in the latest indication that marketers have seen an opportunity to break through and get attention on social media by taking direct swipes at competitors. Natural Light Seltzer's helicopter stunt is the latest volley by a brand against a competitor, but takes a bit of explanation. The Catalina Wine Mixer was a fictional event in the 2008 comedy movie "Step Brothers," in which one character describes the made-up occasion as "the biggest helicopter-leasing event in the Western Hemisphere since 1997." It has since become an actual event on Catalina Island, with wine tastings, music performances, a costume contest and screenings of the movie. Comedian Trevor Wallace, who was onboard Natural Light Seltzer's helicopter, released a video in June featuring his riffs about the hard seltzer category leader, Mark Anthony Brands' White Claw. Compared to last year, sales of White Claw in July grew 283% to $327 million and product is now selling out in stores. Wallace didn't actually have a deal with, or permission from, White Claw when he made the video, and that brand didn't take kindly to what became a viral hit. In their details about the helicopter landing, Natural Light Seltzer — which also calls itself Natty Seltzer — continued the story: "That brand [White Claw] sent him a cease & desist. Natty Seltzer sent him a deal...and a f***ing helicopter." This is just the latest marketing swipe by one hard seltzer brand against another as consumer tastes evolve away from beer toward lighter carbonated drinks. Natural Light entered the space earlier this year with its launch of two hard seltzer flavors at a time when sales are booming and White Claw, in particular, surges. Last week, for instance, Bon & Viv Spiked Seltzer — also in the Anheuser-Busch portfolio — launched another marketing effort against White Claw, in this case promoting a polygraph test of hard seltzer preferences. Just four of 46 participants who said they preferred White Claw Pure over Bon & Viv Classic passed the lie detector test. Last month, Boston Beer Company's Truly Hard Seltzer launched a campaign that demonstrated uses for other alcoholic beverages that didn't include drinking them, such as employing whiskey to fuel a barbecue fire or vodka to clean a tire rim.  |
| Jennifer Dulos’ medical records could ‘shed light’ on disappearance, attorney claims - The Advocate Posted: 10 Sep 2019 03:35 PM PDT 
Jennifer Farber Dulos has not been seen since she dropped off her children at school in New Canaan, Conn., the morning of May 24. Jennifer Farber Dulos has not been seen since she dropped off her children at school in New Canaan, Conn., the morning of May 24. STAMFORD — Fotis Dulos is trying for a second time to access his estranged wife's medical records, which his lawyers say may support their theory that Jennifer Dulos staged her own disappearance to frame her husband. In a new motion filed Tuesday, defense attorney Norm Pattis claimed that blood work and tests done in the months preceding Jennifer Dulos' disappearance could help "shed light on what may have motivated her to disappear." Last month, Judge John Blawie denied an identical request made by Pattis, calling the motion "speculative." However, he also said he would allow Pattis to revisit the motion in the future. At the time, State's Attorney Richard Colangelo called the motion a "fishing expedition." Pattis claims the defense has obtained billing records indicating Jennifer Dulos had $14,000 worth of "tests, blood work, diagnostic treatment and 'lab-reproductive' coding for work done from February through April 2019." "The defendant seeks the medical records to evaluate whether Ms. Dulos, alarmed by her diagnosis and fearing that she might not be able to raise the children on her own, took steps to cause her own disappearance in such a way as to raise suspicions about Mr. Dulos," Pattis wrote in Tuesday's motion. The motion noted the couple was engaged in a highly contentious divorce case and says Jennifer Dulos told her estranged husband "she would do anything she had to do to make sure he did not get custody of their children." Pattis first floated the theory in June that Jennifer Dulos may have faked her own disappearance, a la the novel "Gone Girl." He later went so far as to suggest that she might have perpetrated a "revenge suicide" plot. The theories drew sharp rebukes from Jennifer Dulos' family and friends and "Gone Girl" author Gillian Flynn. Pattis' theories, along with other statements made to the media, spurred Colangelo to request a gag order that would prevent attorneys involved from disseminating information that could prejudice the case. In addition to the "Gone Girl" theories, the prosecution claims Pattis has also made false statements about evidence that could influence potential jurors — specifically about a lie detector test he claimed Michelle Troconis passed. Colangelo said the polygraph was never administered. Fotis Dulos, 52, and Troconis, 44, have each pleaded not guilty to tampering with evidence and hindering prosecution charges in connection with the May 24 disappearance. They were each arrested again last week on new tampering with evidence charges in connection with their roles in cleaning up a 2001 red Toyota Tacoma police believe was used in Jennifer Dulos' disappearance, according to the arrest warrants. Police say Fotis Dulos was driving the pickup, which was owned by one of his employees, the day his wife went missing. Jennifer Dulos was last seen around 8 a.m. May 24 after dropping off her five children at New Canaan Country School. After missing several doctors appointments in New York, she was reported missing around 7 p.m. that night. Police said they found blood spatter and signs that Jennifer Dulos was the victim of a "serious physical assault" in the garage of her Welles Lane home. Police said surveillance videos show Fotis Dulos and Troconis making more than 30 stops in a four-mile stretch of Hartford's Albany Avenue the night of the disappearance. According to arrest warrants, the videos also show Fotis Dulos dumping trash bags, which were later found to contain his estranged wife's blood. Fotis Dulos, who appeared Monday night in a Dateline NBC hour-long segment about the case, will be arraigned Thursday in state Superior Court in Norwalk on the new tampering with evidence charge. He is scheduled to appear for his next pre-trial hearing Friday in Stamford. Troconis will be arraigned Sept. 18 in Norwalk on the new charge and will appear for a pre-trial hearing Sept. 20 in Stamford.  |
| Family suspects foul play in disappearance of Bullhead City woman - AZCentral Posted: 10 Sep 2019 09:14 AM PDT CLOSE  Authorities in California say they are continuing to investigate the disappearance of a Bullhead City woman who went missing nearly two months ago, even though searches for the woman have since been suspended. Family members suspect foul play and are seeking answers. Barbara Thomas was last seen July 12 while hiking with her husband, Robert Thomas, in the Mojave Desert approximately 20 miles north of Interstate 40, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department. The 69-year-old woman was wearing a black bikini, a red baseball cap and tan hiking boots with black socks when she and her husband were separated during the hike, officials said. She did not have any supplies or a cellphone at the time, they added. Matthew Schellinkhout, Thomas' only child who lives in Lafayette, Indiana, said his mom was great at cheering people up. He added that his two children called her "Grandma Barbie," and that she was given the nickname because of her beauty. "Mom liked Collies and Himalayan cats, a very outgoing personality — loved to dance and cook," he said. "My mother and I were close. ... (We) spoke on the phone often (and) she loved my children, Christopher,13, and Natalie, 11. ... I wish my children and I lived out there. (Her disappearance) would not have happened," he added. Schellinkhout explained that Thomas had previously been married to his father and then 14 years ago was remarried to Robert Thomas. Cindy Bachman, a sheriff's spokeswoman, said that investigators were looking into all leads. The agency's Specialized Investigations Division has assumed the investigation into Thomas' disappearance, according to Bachman. The department's website states that the Specialized Investigations Division is composed of homicide detail, crimes against children and technology crimes. The Sheriff's Department declined The Arizona Republic's request for public records, including an initial police report and 911 recording, stating that they are considered investigatory documents and are exempt from disclosure under California law. Robert Thomas declined to comment to The Republic. On July 15, he told KTNV-TV, a Las Vegas TV station, that he believes his wife was abducted after rounding a corner during their hike while he stopped to a take a photo. He believes she may have been taken to Las Vegas. The news station said the couple had previously lived in Henderson, Nevada. A few days after the interview, Robert Thomas told Insider authorities considered him the prime suspect in their investigation after he failed a polygraph test. Bachman said the Sheriff's Department does not release information on polygraph tests. In a statement written by several members of Barbara Thomas' family based in Hong Kong, she is described as an avid and regular desert explorer along with her husband, Robert. "The chances she became lost or disoriented in the five minutes between her husband reporting last seeing her, and him (realizing) she was missing, are highly improbable," the family said in the statement shared with The Republic. The statement was provided to The Republic by Derek Bullen, Barbara Thomas' nephew. The family members said Barbara Thomas was scheduled to visit them in Hong Kong on July 23. "Barbara does not have a history of any illness that we know of. We have no reason to believe Barbara would walk away from her husband, or disappear in the manner she has. Especially not so near to a trip to Hong Kong to visit her younger brother in (the) hospital," the family's statement reads. The family asks that anyone with information related to the disappearance contact authorities. Sheriff's Detective Nicholas Clark can be reached at 909-387-3589. "To Barbara, we love you and will never give up in searching to find you," they stated. "There are hundreds of people actively working to help us. We miss you dearly and remain hopeful you will be found soon. " Searches for Thomas were conducted from July 12 to July 22, according to Bachman. Initial search efforts were conducted in the area east of Kelbaker and Hidden Hill roads — where officials say she was last seen — with numerous search and rescue members, deputies, K9s, park rangers, a sheriff's helicopter and off-road vehicles, according to the agency's Nixle webpage. On July 20 and 21, among the search and rescue members were some "certified in cave searches, rope climbing and desert terrain ground hikers," the webpage states. Temperatures in the area at the time were in the triple digits, according to the Sheriff's Department. Bachman said more searches would be held as new information develops. Reach the reporter at chelsea.curtis@arizonarepublic.com or follow her on Twitter @curtis_chels. Support local journalism. Subscribe to azcentral today. Read or Share this story: https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2019/09/10/family-members-barbara-thomas-suspect-foul-play-disappearance/2147803001/  |
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