Former WWE chairman Vince McMahon has been under fire over allegations of sex trafficking and sexual assault from former employe Janel Grant, placing McMahon under a federal probe.
Things only got worse when Netflix released a documentary series entitled Mr. McMahon, looking at McMahon’s controversial career.
Now, it looks like yet another lawsuit is coming at McMahon and WWE.
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – FEBRUARY 16: Vince McMahon attends a press conference to announce that WWE Wrestlemania 29 will be held at MetLife Stadium in 2013 at MetLife Stadium on February 16, 2012 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Michael N. Todaro/Getty Images
A new lawsuit has been filed against McMahon, WWE, TKO, and Titan Sports, Inc. co-founder Linda McMahon stating that the “defendants allegedly allowed open, rampant abuse of underage boys employed by WWE.”
Specifically, the lawsuit refers to “Ring Boys,” underaged boys that were hired by former ring announcer and crew chief Melvin Phillips Jr. to “assist with errands and other tasks” during preparations for shows.
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The case was filed in the Circuit Court for Baltimore County, MD by DiCello Levitt’s Greg Gutzler, Mark DiCello, Bobby DiCello, Adam Prom, Emma Bruder, and Murphy, Falcon & Murphy’s William H. “Billy” Murphy, Jr.
“The underaged Ring Boys were groomed, exploited, and sexually abused by Phillips, who targeted children from broken homes,” the suit claims. “His sexual assaults occurred not only at the wrestling venues but also in hotel rooms and other locations where Phillips would shuttle the boys in plain sight.”
A new lawsuit has been filed today by former WWF ring boys against WWE, TKO, Vince McMahon, and Linda McMahon.
Press release from attorneys for the plaintiffs:
BALTIMORE, October 23, 2024—DiCello Levitt and Murphy, Falcon & Murphy filed a major lawsuit today against World… pic.twitter.com/nMQpL2hxZg
— Brandon Thurston (@BrandonThurston) October 23, 2024
“Defendants were fully aware of the systemic and pervasive abuse and did nothing to prevent or stop it. The FBI previously identified at least ten Ring Boys abused by Phillips, but there are likely countless others who have suffered in silence for decades.”
According to the suit, the survivors (John Does 1-5) only recently learned the “depth of knowledge that the McMahons and the WWE had about what happened to them.”
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“Thanks to the bravery of our clients, we finally have a chance to hold accountable those who allowed and enabled the open, rampant sexual abuse of these young boys,” Greg Gutzler said. “That so many were aware of the sexual abuse of the Ring Boys and did nothing to prevent or stop it is simply unconscionable.”
“The WWE and McMahons had a responsibility to these underaged boys, and they failed them in the worst way possible. We will vigorously fight to uncover the truth about this systemic, insidious, and life-altering abuse,” Mark DiCello said. “We commend our clients for their bravery in coming forward and promise to relentlessly seek justice for them.”
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