WWE facing another major lawsuit as infamous 'Ring Boys' scandal case allowed to proceed

Independent05-02-2025

The 'Ring Boys' lawsuit being brought against the WWE and its co-founders, President Donald Trump 's Education Secretary nominee Linda McMahon and her husband Vince McMahon, is set to resume.
The civil lawsuit, which claims the McMahons knowingly enabled the sexual exploitation of children by a longtime WWW employee, was subject to a temporary pause in the Maryland Supreme Court's ruling over the Child Victims Act.
On Monday, justices voted four-three to preserve the act, eliminating the statute of limitations for victims of child sexual abuse to sue their alleged abusers. The McMahon family denies all allegations.
The court's decision comes as Linda McMahon awaits her Senate confirmation hearing for Secretary of Education. Trump, who wants to dismantle the Department of Education, recently claimed McMahon should eventually 'put herself out of a job.'
It means the lawsuit filed in Baltimore County on October 23 on behalf of five anonymous ex-ring boys, young employees tasked with building the wrestling ring before events, accusing the McMahons and the WWE of negligence for allegedly fostering a culture of sexual abuse can go ahead.
DiCello Levitt, the law firm representing the victims, said additional ex-ring boys have since joined the suit, according to Fox Sports.
Per the complaint, the WWE co-founders looked the other way for years after allegedly learning of a longtime ringside announcer preying on minors.
Melvin Phillips, who died in 2012, is accused of targeting boys – as young as 12 or 13 years old – from disadvantaged backgrounds and hiring them to help with the preparations for wrestling matches, according to the filing.
The lawsuit alleges that between the late 1980s and early 1990s, Phillips would assault the ring boys in his dressing room, hotels and the wrestlers' locker room.
Because of his death, Phillips is not among the named defendants. Instead, the complaint targets the WWE, its co-founders and parent company TKO Holdings.
'That so many were aware of the sexual abuse of the Ring Boys and did nothing to prevent or stop it is simply unconscionable,' Greg Gutzler, an attorney from DiCello Levitt who represents the five unnamed plaintiffs, told The Independent in October.
McMahon's attorney Laura Brevetti told CNN in November that the the ring boy lawsuit is 'baseless'.
'Ms. McMahon will vigorously defend against this baseless lawsuit and without doubt ultimately succeed,' Brevetti said.
Another blockbuster lawsuit against the WWE and Vince McMahon by former employee Janel Grant also advanced in recent days after it was amended to include the name of a former WWE champion Brock Lesnar.
In the 104-page lawsuit, Grant now alleges that she was offered to Lesnar 'for a sexual encounter' during his contract negotiations with the WWE.
In addition, Grant alleges that she was told to send sexual content to the former WWE champion.
The lawsuit was submitted to the U.S. District Court in Connecticut. Grant alleges that the WWE was negligent in allowing McMahon's behavior to go on unchecked. One of the men previously named in the lawsuit, John Laurinaitis, claims that he too was a victim of McMahon.
Another WWE legend, Michael Hayes, is also named in the new filing with Grant alleging that McMahon told her to make pornographic content for him. At the time, Hayes worked as part of the wrestling company's creative team.
The Independent has contacted the WWE and Brevetti, Linda McMahon's lawyer, for more information.

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Majority of Scots want to see pimping websites banned

Scotsman

3 days ago

Scotsman

Majority of Scots want to see pimping websites banned

Rhoda Grant MSP is due to lead a parliamentary debate on commercial sexual exploitation. Sign up to our Politics newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The majority of Scots want to see pimping websites banned, according to a new poll. Seven in 10 Scots want to see websites which advertise the sale of women for sex outlawed - only one in 10 say they would oppose proposals to make this illegal. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad A higher proportion of women compared to men favoured making these sites illegal according to the Savanta poll, with the highest amount of support being amongst the over 35s. A cross-party group of MSPs are calling on the Scottish Government to ban online pimping, after an inquiry found commercial websites are facilitating sex trafficking and sexual exploitation. Scottish Labour MSP Rhoda Grant is due to lead a Holyrood debate on the issue, where she will say 'Scotland is an attractive destination for sex traffickers' because of the pimping websites. Current prostitution laws in Scotland mean pimping websites are legal, however MSPs will soon be asked to consider a bill which would criminalise the buying of sex. Ms Grant will lead her debate on stopping commercial sexual exploitation on Tuesday afternoon, where she will brand prostitution 'a form of violence against women'. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad She said: 'It is vital that we take a stand against violence against women and girls and sexual exploitation is one of the forms such violence takes. 'Vulnerable women and girls are groomed and coerced into selling sex, often without realising the extent to which they are being manipulated. Rhoda Grant, Labour MSP for the Highlands and Islands. 'In countries around the world where the buying of sex is criminalised and women are provided with safe exit routes, we see women's lives improving and their safety increasing. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'This poll shows that the public recognises the dangers posed to women in the sex industry and that more needs to be done to ensure their safety. 'Women's bodies are not a commodity.' The poll was carried out for CARE for Scotland - Jessica McDowell from the organisation said: 'Pimping sites are vile platforms allowing for the objectification of women, and their exploitation by human traffickers. 'In a dangerous online world where men are being encouraged to abuse and exploit women by people like the Tate brothers, they are even more dangerous than in years gone by.

Majority of Scots want to be pimping websites banned

Scotsman

3 days ago

Scotsman

Majority of Scots want to be pimping websites banned

Baltimore schools sued for failing to protect students from a predatory teacher

The Independent

4 days ago

The Independent

Baltimore schools sued for failing to protect students from a predatory teacher

Three women are suing Baltimore's public school system, alleging they were sexually abused by a special education teacher decades ago while administrators failed to protect students from his predatory behavior. One of the plaintiffs was 14 when she alleges the teacher, whom the lawsuit names as Alvin Hunt, raped and impregnated her, according to the complaint. At a news conference Monday morning, attorneys for the women said school officials knew about the abuse and allowed it to continue. They said Hunt would lure students to his house under the pretense of after-school tutoring. The allegations contained in the lawsuits occurred in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Attempts to reach Hunt were unsuccessful. A message seeking comment was left for a spokesperson for Baltimore City Public Schools. The lawsuits add to a growing pile of child sexual abuse claims filed in Maryland since the state eliminated its statute of limitations for such cases. Lawmakers approved the Child Victims Act in 2023 with abuse findings against the Catholic Church in mind, but its impacts have extended well beyond religious institutions. The state's juvenile justice system in particular is facing widespread reckoning after thousands of victims came forward. Pamela Coleman said she gave birth to Hunt's daughter after he drugged and raped her. Hunt offered the teen a ride home from school and gave her a cigarette laced with an illicit substance that caused her to lose consciousness, her complaint says. 'My childhood and teen years was just ripped from me,' Coleman said at the news conference. She said her mother reported the abuse and administrators transferred her to another school after learning she was pregnant. The AP doesn't typically identify victims of abuse unless they want to be named. Attorneys said Hunt, who was also a sports coach, never faced prosecution or accountability for his actions. Instead, he retired from the school system after a long career. He is not named as a defendant in the lawsuits, which were filed against the Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners. 'This abuse was not just known, it was normalized,' said attorney Janai Woodhouse with the Baltimore law firm Murphy, Falcon & Murphy. 'This wasn't hidden. It was tolerated.' She said the Child Victims Act allows abuse survivors the time they need to come forward, often decades later. Before its passage, victims couldn't sue after they turned 38. The three plaintiffs were young and vulnerable when they were abused by someone they trusted, their attorneys said. 'You can imagine the amount of psychological trauma that was inflicted here. So it took some time,' Woodhouse said. 'But they gathered the courage to come to us and they're ready to seek justice now.' According to the lawsuit filed on behalf of Collette Lee, she went to Hunt's house for tutoring with another special education student. He cornered her and tried to assault her, but she says she managed to escape. 'I was able to run,' she said during the news conference. 'I've been running for a long time. I'm tired. I want justice.' The lawsuits were filed Friday in state court. The plaintiffs are seeking punitive damages.