Shannon Sharpe may have a beefy media deal on his hands, but he has much more pressing matters to attend now. An anonymous woman accused him of sexual assault and rape in a $50 million lawsuit filed on Sunday (April 20) in Nevada, per TMZ Sports.
The Jane Doe alleged various instances of sexual assault towards the end of 2024 and the beginning of 2025. In addition, she claimed to have a long-lasting and abusive relationship with the former athlete and sports commentator.
At press time, Shannon Sharpe has not yet responded to this lawsuit or its allegations publicly, so we will see how this develops. As for his accuser, the anonymous woman alleges they met in a Los Angeles gym in 2023. She was allegedly 20 years old at the time.
According to accusations in the legal documents, he offered to pay for plastic surgery and constantly sought her out. For example, Sharpe was allegedly "demanding she come to his Beverly Glen mansion," per the lawsuit. The Jane Doe claims they eventually entered a consensual relationship marked by allegedly controlling and verbally abusive behavior on his behalf.
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Shannon Sharpe Lawsuit
"He demanded complete control over her time and body," the plaintiff's attorney Tony Buzbee claimed in the suit. "[He expected] her to be at his house on his schedule, at his command, whenever he called." You may recognize Buzbee's name from the high-profile controversy he faced over a lawsuit against Diddy and Jay-Z.
Back to the Shannon Sharpe allegations, though, his accuser referenced a particularly frightening alleged argument. She accused him of shouting at her while a gun was in the room.
"Plaintiff tried sharing her location with friends from her iPhone – just in case," the legal documents alleged. "But Sharpe saw her doing this. The moment he realized what she was doing, he grabbed her by the neck and told her, 'If you ever do that again, I will f***ing kill you.'"
Despite this alleged behavior, Shannon Sharpe and the anonymous woman allegedly moved to Nevada in the summer of 2024. The Jane Doe alleges she sought a breakup following Sharpe's infamous Instagram Live incident. However, she claims this led to him allegedly raping her.
The plaintiff alleges the first instance happened in October of 2024 at her apartment. The second instance allegedly occurred in January of 2025 at her home under false pretenses of Christmas and birthday celebrations.
