We know nothing of this case but the one side in the lawsuit as reported by Radar, but those details at least superficially seem to fit two all too familiar stories: The aggressive, arrogance of professional athletes and consensual sex and the impact of the closet and complex traumas forced to stay in the closet.
In any case, a well-known — to sports fans — basketball player Dwight Howard of the Los Angeles Lakers finds himself at the center of a heated assault lawsuit. Leaked explicit text messages shed light on the details of the alleged assault. The lawsuit, filed by a man Howard met on Instagram, accuses the player of assault and battery, kidnapping, and non-consensual sex.
Former Laker Dwight Howard Sued for Alleged Assault and Battery
In recent developments reported by RadarOnline.com, a man named Stephen Harper has brought suit against a well known — to sports fans — NBA athlete Dwight Howard. Harper alleges multiple charges, including assault and battery, with a specific focus on claims of nonconsensual sexual acts and the participation of a third party.
RadarOnline's perusal of the court documents found the chronology claimed by Harper, begins with him reaching out to Howard on Instagram, using what he describes as a “secondary Instagram account.”
Howard's Response to Harper in his DMs? Devil Emoji.
Harper says Howard responded by texting him the devil emoji. The two then continued texting, veering towards explicit topics, with Howard ostensibly saying he wanted to see Harper's…uh… explcit images.
When asked who he was, Harper says he revealed his other Instagram account. In the photograph of the alleged messages Howard allegedly messaged: “Now I want you to know I'm not like gay or anything. I'm jus a lil nasty sometimes. Ion wanna offend you.”
The lawsuit specifies a timeline of interactions between May and July 2021, during which sexually explicit materials were supposedly exchanged. Howard is said to have invited Harper to his residence in Georgia for a sexual encounter on July 19, 2021.
Harper asserts that Howard assured him his son was sleeping and said he would have to leave before anyone awoke. Before he even arrived at Howard's house, however, in the Uber Howard alledgedly texted to ask how he felt about a three-way with a “dude” or “girl”
40 Minutes of Kissing Alleged Before Turning to ….
Radar reports that the two made out a while in Howard's bedroom. That was consensual, and went for 40 minutes according to Harper. Then Howard brought up the expansive sexy talk again and Harper noticed him texting someone before “Kitty” arrived dressed as a woman.
Howard allegedly encouraged Harper to participate in a threesome with Kitty, even as Harper said he wanted to leave and did persuade him to stay for an extended encounter, which at some point Harper alleges evolved into nonconsensual sexual acts, with Howard performing oral sex on him without his consent.
Howard Allegedly Ignored Multiple “No”s and Got Angry
Initially Harper says Howard rubbed his thigh and stroked his “penis through his underwear”. The basketball star allegedly then ignored Harper saying no both verbally and shaking his head and got angry, allegedly saying he was “going to do whatever” and Harper was “going to like it.”
Radar reports the suit goes on: “Defendant stood up (towering over Mr. Harper), grabbed Mr. Harper by the thighs, forcibly removed Mr. Harper's underwear, held Mr. Harper down, and performed nonconsensual oral sex on Mr. Harper,” the suit read. “Mr. Harper was in fear of imminent bodily harm when he was pinned down and forced to remain in place while Defendant continued to sexually assault him.”
Harper's suit claims feeling violated and humiliated and in shock after the supposed incident.; Harper also mentions trying to depart Howard's residence but being persuaded to accept a ride from Kitty at Howard's behest.
As noted, these are assertions and Howard had remained silent by the time of their report.
In past instances, Howard has denied rumors about his sexual orientation. He is the father of 5 children, each with a different woman.
