Vince McMahon faces new sexual assault allegation

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(TW: sexual assault, rape)

Just five weeks ago, it was reported that the WWE Board of Directors had completed their investigation into former CEO Vince McMahon. At the time, it was unclear whether the council would ever publish its findings. Brandon Thurston reported that WWE spent $19.4 million on the investigation.

In a new Wall Street Journal article, Joe Palazzolo and Ted Mann report that McMahon is facing “legal demands from two women who claim he sexually assaulted them.”

Rita Chatterton is a former WWE referee who claims McMahon raped her in a limo in 1986. Her attorney sent a formal notice to McMahon’s representatives for $11.75 million in damages on November 3. The CEO assaulted his client in 2011. The assault happened at a California spa and, according to the WSJ, had not previously been reported to the media.

The allegations against McMahon

In my previous report on the situation involving McMahon, I included Chatterton’s previous allegations. In 1992, she did two television interviews detailing the incident. In order to receive a $500,000 WWF contract, McMahon told her she would have to fulfill it. When she refused, Chatterton says he raped her. After that, the WWF stopped booking her.

John Clune, Chatterton’s attorney, said in the notice that the damage caused to his client by the incident “was difficult to overestimate”. The letter was reviewed by WSJ. The letter also states that Chatterton has “suffered years of ongoing depression, substance abuse, eating disorders, loss of income and an overall diminished quality of life.”

The letter also states that Chatterton passed a polygraph test and that several people corroborated his story, including former WWF wrestler Greg “The Hammer” Valentine. Valentine, real name John Wisinski, says Chatterton told her about the rape in the 1980s. He didn’t believe her at the time because “she wasn’t attractive enough” for McMahon.

As previously reported, Leonard Inzitari said Chatterton told him what happened to him. Inzitari went to wrestling school with her and said she was “shaking and crying” as she told him. He says he believes her.

The spa manager said she was assaulted by McMahon at a five-star resort when WWE was in town. She reported the assault at the time to the station. She also told her husband, who reportedly came to the event with a baseball bat and tried to see McMahon. He was turned away. WSJ also reports that his attorney, Michael Bessler, has been in contact with McDevitt since July.

In 2006, McMahon groped an employee of a tanning salon in Florida. Although he was not charged, there was a police report indicating that there was probable cause that the incident had taken place and that there were witnesses. This is in addition to the four women he paid more than $19 million to.

Earlier this year, New York passed the Adult Survivors Act. The “law creates a unique one-year look-back window for adult survivors of sexual assault who are not within the statute of limitations. This means that any adult survivor – no matter when they were assaulted and even if they are past the statute of limitations – can bring a civil action against their abuser or the institution that protected them, until November 24, 2023. »

California has a similar law where survivors of sexual abuse can “file lawsuits that would otherwise be barred by the statute of limitations.” From January, survivors can start filing lawsuits and have a one-year window.

New WWE Board Probe on McMahon?

Although it was previously reported that the “special committee has disbanded”, the WSJ revealed that a “related board investigation seeks to assess the damage caused by Mr. McMahon’s secret pacts and to determine whether legal action against him by the WWE Board of Directors is warranted. WWE spokespersons and independent members of the company’s board of directors declined to comment. Mr. McMahon declined to comment. Mr. (Jerry) McDevitt did not respond to requests for comment.

“WWE also declined to discuss the allegations against Mr. McMahon.”

Even with McMahon retired, he is still WWE’s largest shareholder. After his retirement, his daughter, Stephanie, was named co-CEO along with Nick Khan. Vince’s son-in-law and Stephanie’s husband, Paul “Triple H” Levesque is the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations, WWE Chief Creative Officer and Chief Content Officer.

McMahon allegedly refused to pay the settlements to the spa manager and Chatterton. WSJ also reports that the company’s auditor, Deloitte & Touche, LLP “this claims resolution, although confidential, should eventually be publicly disclosed by the company.”

Vince McMahon wants to come back

There have been rumors for a few months that WWE are planning to induct McMahon into their Hall of Fame in 2023 and bid him farewell. McMahon reportedly wanted to make a comeback. The WSJ said he believed he received bad advice when he was told to quit and had he stayed, the allegations would have been dismissed.

The general consensus is that WWE’s top brass don’t want McMahon back and “are happy with the direction” of the company.

I have to say they wanted nothing to do with Vince coming back. We hadn’t discussed him telling people he was planning on doing one. “Done done” was the phrase I often had

— Fightful.com’s Sean Ross Sapp (@SeanRossSapp) December 13, 2022

Allowing McMahon to return in any capacity would destroy any goodwill WWE has accumulated since his retirement. They’ve already allowed several wrestlers named in Speaking Out to not only continue working there, but pushed them into big storylines and some won championships. WWE already doesn’t have a good reputation when it comes to sexual violence and bringing him back would ruin their reputation. It’s a terrible look to even consider honoring McMahon, let alone letting him return to work in any capacity.

The co-CEOs and superiors must not give in and hold it as far as possible. Yes, he did a lot of things that changed the wrestling world forever. He also changed the lives of these women forever. This cannot be swept under the rug simply because of his contributions to the business. The “Mr. McMahon” character is a caricature of the real man and that man is awful. Allowing him to return would be a giant “F you” to his victims.

As always, stay tuned to Daily DDT for the latest news.

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