Dwight Howard denies sexual assault allegations, wants lawsuit dismissed،
Former NBA star Dwight Howard has denied allegations of sexual assault and battery filed against him earlier this year and asked a court to dismiss the civil lawsuit he faces in Georgia.
In court documents obtained by ESPN, Howard said Monday that he engaged in “consensual sexual activity” with a man named Stephen Harper during a July 2021 encounter at Howard’s Georgia residence. Howard denied causing harm to Harper, according to the filing.
In the initial complaint filed in July, Harper’s lawyers said he and Howard began corresponding via direct messages on Instagram in May 2021, with Harper initiating the exchange. Harper accused Howard of sexually assaulting him at Howard’s home during the subsequent July 2021 encounter.
“We fully expected Mr. Howard to raise the issue of consent in his response,” Harper’s lawyer Olga Izmaylova told ESPN, adding that Harper did not consent.
Harper’s complaint also accused Howard of “intentionally causing emotional distress” and false imprisonment. Howard’s response denied these allegations.
“What was a private consensual encounter was made public for profit and Mr. Howard looks forward to revealing the truth in court,” one of Howard’s attorneys, Justin Bailey, told ESPN. “The allegations against Mr. Howard are disputed. Mr. Howard intends to present the truth. The truth is that Mr. Howard blocked Mr. Harper on social media and was then faced with two options: pay to protect one’s reputation or have a false reputation.” The story was made public. Although he is an easy target due to the subject matter and his celebrity status, Mr. Howard has chosen to trust the justice system and will rely on any future court filings to speak for himself. “
Harper’s complaint includes screenshots of alleged Instagram exchanges between Harper and Howard from 2021, as well as an Uber receipt from Harper’s trip to Howard’s residence on the night of the encounter.
Harper turned himself in to police a year later, according to a July 2022 incident report from the Gwinnett County Police Department, obtained by ESPN. No charges have been filed.
“This report was written following the blocking of Mr. Harper on social media and after the first request for payment was rejected,” Bailey said.
In Georgia, the statute of limitations for filing this type of civil lawsuit is two years from the date of the incident.
“We needed to conduct an independent investigation and Mr. Harper needed to consider some private factors,” Izmaylova said, “before we all felt ready to proceed with the prosecution.”
Howard, 37, last played in the NBA in 2021-22 with the Los Angeles Lakers. He is an eight-time All-Star and three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
