Antonio Brown Sexual Assault Accuser Drops Federal Lawsuit, Refiles in Florida State Court

A personal trainer named Britney Taylor is suing wide receiver Antonio Brown for allegedly exploiting and raping her back in 2017 and 2018. This suit was originally filed in federal court, but now the situation has changed. The legal team for Taylor has voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit from a federal court, but the story is not over. The suit will now be refiled in a Florida state court.

According to Nick Valencia of CNN, this decision is due to changes on Taylor’s legal team. Attorney David Haas has said that it’s “a strategic decision as new counsel has joined Taylor’s legal team.”

In early September, Brown signed with the New England Patriots after being released by the Oakland Raiders, only to be met with allegations of sexual assault. This suit filed by Taylor put his future with the NFL in question and kicked off an investigation by the league.

Taylor alleged in her lawsuit that the 31-year-old receiver “used manipulation and false promises to lure her into his world, and once there, he sexually assaulted and raped her.”

Additionally, the lawsuit said that the pair originally met in a bible study while they were students at Central Michigan University in 2010. Taylor later became Brown’s personal trainer, which is when the incidents allegedly occurred.

On Sept. 10, Brown denied these allegations, saying in a statement from his lawyer, Darren Heitner, that Taylor wants to financially benefit from his celebrity. Additionally, this statement said that Brown “refuses to be the victim of what he believes to be a money grab.”

The Allegheny District Attorney and Police Department both reached out to Taylor and her legal team following the original lawsuit being filed, but they could not proceed with an investigation into the incidents that allegedly occurred in Pennsylvania due to the statute of limitations.

“Our office, along with the Allegheny County Police Department, made contact with counsel for the plaintiff in the federal lawsuit involving Antonio Brown,” the DA said in a statement. “Procedurally, it appears there is a statute of limitations issue in moving forward with any inquiry involving the Allegheny County allegation mentioned in the lawsuit.”

In Florida, however, there is potential for the investigation to continue. The statute of limitations on specific issues can range from 2-4 years, depending on how the action is defined. For example, the statute of limitations for most sexual assault cases in Florida is four years. Two of the alleged incidents involving Brown fit within this timeline.

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