Michael Irvin is suing Marriott for $100 million and has compared the hotel chain’s treatment of him to “hanging brothers by a tree.”
NFL Star Michal Irvin Sues Marriott for $100 Million, Accuses Hotel Chain Of Lynching
Irvin, the former wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys and current NFL sports commentator was pulled from his Super Bowl LVII duties after an alleged “inappropriate encounter” with a female employee at the Renaissance Hotel in Phoenix, Arizona.
Irvin responded by suing Marriott for $100 million and insisting that he was innocent after Marriott refused to let him review surveillance footage of the alleged encounter.
A court ordered Marriott to let Irvin’s attorney, Levi McCathern, review the footage. Upon doing so earlier this week, McCathern said:
“The allegations are nonsense. We need to immediately get Michael back to work.”
McCathern was not allowed to make a copy of the tape nor was Irvin allowed to accompany him to the viewing.
At the same press conference, Irvin laid out his side of the story:
“This sickens me, this sickens me. Because in this great country, this takes me back to a time where a white woman would accuse a black man of something, and they would take a bunch of guys that were above the law, run in a barn, put a rope around his foot and drag him through the mud and hang him by a tree.
“How can I defend myself if I don’t even know what I’m defending myself against. I couldn’t even tell you what she looks like. I don’t know! This just blows my mind that in 2023, we’re still dragging and hanging brothers by a tree. That blows my mind…and absolutely, to not listen to the court, Marriott is above the law, because I still haven’t seen this tape.”
That’s a strong defense, though Irvin did tell the Shan & RJ program on 105.3FM in Dallas that though he did not remember the encounter, he did have a “few” drinks.
“It was a minute meeting somewhere in the lobby. I don’t even remember it really because I had a few drinks, to tell you the truth.”
CONCLUSION
Michael Irvin has compared Marriott’s treatment of him to lynching and maintained his innocence in a $100 million lawsuit against the hotel chain. I expect the surveillance video will leak or otherwise be made public soon, so we can see for ourselves what happen, albeit perhaps without audio.
Mark this story as developing.
