Lawyers for former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin released surveillance video Tuesday from the hotel in Phoenix where an employee accused him of harassment. Irvin was there last month to cover the Super Bowl.
Irvin's lawyers had previously filed a $100 million federal lawsuit against the woman and Marriott for defamation and interference with a business relationship. Tuesday, attorney Levi McCathern said they had asked for the federal lawsuit against Marriott to be dismissed. Instead, they are moving the lawsuit to state court in Arizona.
"When you file a lawsuit, you have to sue the right people," he said. "That's really difficult to find out in the beginning."
Also Tuesday, McCathern released surveillance video of the encounter. He said the video shows Irvin and the woman talking in the hotel lobby for 1 minute and 49 seconds.
McCathern said the video also shows the employee seeking out Irvin, not the other way around.
"Guys, this is ridiculous," he said. "I know what happened here. It's an overreaction. This is cancel culture. It's where we are."
He said the video shows her walking out of her way to see Irvin and laughing at things he says. McCathern said the video also shows another employee who appears to be upset with her.
"I don't know why he's mad, but he's clearly frustrated with that employee," McCathern said. "The employee's happy as a lark. You don't do the little leg kicks and the over-the-shoulder without that."
"I'm so thankful for this video because, without it, I just don't know where this would have gone," Irvin said.
McCathern said the encounter happened on Feb. 5, but he said the woman did not file a complaint with her employer until the following afternoon.
"We think that's relevant because there's a big gap between the events you see and when she first files something that she was offended," he said.
Irvin said they talked briefly about football and where she could see him on television. He said he "totally denies" making statements similar to those listed in Marriott's response to the original lawsuit.
"Here's the truth: We used to say when we played football, 'The eye in the sky don't tell no lies.' It's just the truth," Irvin said.
Marriott has not made any public comments about the lawsuit. In its response to the initial suit, the company wrote Irvin "appeared to be visibly intoxicated in the hotel bar."
Marriott had previously said Irvin made "inappropriate" comments during the exchange and said he tried to grab her hand as she backed away. The response said other employees then "noticed that the Victim had a look of concern on her face and began moving toward Irvin and the Victim, prompting Irvin to state that 'security' had noticed him and extend his hand for another handshake."
Irvin sued the hotel chain last month after an employee, who works at a Marriott in Phoenix, accused him of sexual misconduct.
Irvin was in Phoenix to cover the Super Bowl but was suddenly taken off the air by the NFL Network after the allegations came to light. He was adamant that nothing happened.
Marriott pushed back saying it had video of the incident.
Irvin has dropped the lawsuit. The paperwork was filed Monday in federal court in Sherman, Texas. There is no word on whether this means the two sides have reached a settlement.
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