Latest news with #DesireeTownsend
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Mario Lopez 'Completely Lost It' At Cheerleader Suing Him During Explosive Court Appearance
reportedly lashed out at former NFL cheerleader Desiree Townsend during a recent court hearing to request a permanent restraining order against her. The TV personality was sued in June by Townsend over claims of orchestrating a smear campaign against her when he reposted an old, humiliating video of her. Townsend is expected to take the stand later this week, where she will be cross-examined as part of Lopez's ongoing effort to secure the restraining order. Desiree Townsend is also requesting $25 million in her case against Mario Lopez and has expressed her surprise that the actor sought a restraining order. The Actor Called The Cheerleader' Crazy,' 'Unhinged,' And A 'Stalker' In an interview with Radar Online, Desiree Townsend shared a shocking account of what allegedly unfolded during a recent court hearing over Mario Lopez's attempt to secure a permanent restraining order against her. Townsend and Lopez are currently locked in a $25 million defamation battle, which she initiated in June. In response, Lopez filed for a temporary restraining order and appeared in court this week seeking to make it permanent. According to Townsend, the entire courtroom turned chaotic when Lopez took the witness stand during the hearing. She claimed that Lopez "completely lost it" and was screaming, an outburst she said left her feeling threatened and shaken. "He screamed, actually screamed, on the witness stand," Townsend recalled to the news outlet. "He was so 'p-ssed' as he categorized it that the judge had to calm him down." She further noted that Lopez "had a full-blown outburst," adding that he called her "crazy," "unhinged," and a "stalker." Why Desiree Townsend Filed A Lawsuit Against Mario Lopez In 2024, Lopez shared a throwback clip of the ex-cheerleader-turned-paralegal on Instagram, sarcastically writing, "There's gotta be some kind of award for this performance," while adding the hashtags #MethodActor and #OscarWorthy. In the over 15-year-old clip, Townsend appeared to slur her speech and dance erratically in front of the camera. She later explained to an outlet, Inside Edition, that her behavior was due to a rare neurological condition, dystonia. The cheerleader reportedly developed the ailment after taking a seasonal flu shot at the time. After the video went viral following Lopez's repost, Townsend filed a lawsuit against him, accusing the TV host of using a false statement that severely harmed both her personal and professional reputation. The Cheerleaders Claimed She Suffered 'Harassment' Due To Mario Lopez's Actions According to reports, Townsend also alleged that she suffered "emotional distress" and "online harassment" due to the remark. She deemed it as dehumanizing and defaming to "a woman living with a rare neurological disability." "The timing, tone, and scale of the attack support a reasonable inference that Lopez is familiar with deploying reputational warfare as a tool of intimidation, particularly when facing potential exposure," Townsend mentioned in her lawsuit. Mario Lopez Filed For A Restraining Order Against Desiree Townsend After She Served Him Court Papers Instead of sending a process server alone to deliver court papers to Lopez, Townsend chose to accompany the server during the delivery. She later shared a video of the tense encounter with Radar Online, which showed her telling a shirtless Lopez, "You've been served" and "See you in court" as the process server placed the documents in the front yard of his home. Lopez, upset by the unexpected confrontation at his residence, responded by obtaining a temporary restraining order before moving forward with a request for a permanent one. He claimed in court documents that he was "harmed" by the interaction with Townsend and that she caused "chaos and fear for his young children and family members who witnessed the event." Lopez also accused Townsend of escalating the harm by sharing on social media a video of her serving him, which exposed his personal address to the world and placed him and his family at "risk of further harassment, public ridicule, and potential physical danger." The Cheerleader Says She Was Surprised The Actor Filed A Restraining Order In her interview with Radar, Townsend also revealed that she was surprised by the restraining order and called it a "clickbait tactic" that will ultimately "backfire" on Lopez. "I truly don't understand what he's thinking," she told the news outlet. "He's escalating this into a public spectacle when it could have been resolved quietly through civil litigation. The former cheerleader added, "Filing for a restraining order feels like a clickbait tactic, and from both a PR and legal standpoint, it's likely to backfire. Especially when the very behavior he's calling 'harassment' is precisely what he did to me." Later this week, Townsend is expected to face cross-examination when the hearing for Lopez's request for a permanent restraining order resumes. Solve the daily Crossword
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Mario Lopez SCREAMS at cheerleader suing him for defamation during fiery court appearance
Mario Lopez allegedly flew into a frenzy and screamed at a former NFL cheerleader as he came face-to-face with her in court. The Saved by the Bell star, 51, lost his cool in court this week as he sought a restraining order from Desiree Townsend, a former cheerleader for the Washington Commanders who is suing him for defamation. Lopez is accused of launching a 'smear campaign' against Townsend and trying to humiliate her with a social media post, and she is seeking $10 million from the actor. Townsend filed her lawsuit over an Instagram post Lopez shared last year, which showed a news clip from 2009 in which Townsend claimed she was suffering a rare neurological disorder called dystonia. She alleged at the time that she developed the condition after receiving a flu shot, and she was seen slurring her words and gyrating for the cameras. The news team then followed Townsend as she began acting normally and driving a car, implying she was faking. Lopez shared the video and captioned it: 'There's gotta be some kind of award for this performance… #MethodActor #OscarWorthy.' After Townsend served him with a lawsuit at his home on Father's Day earlier this year, Lopez got a temporary restraining order against her - and was recently back in court trying to make the order permanent. Townsend told Radar Online that when Lopez took the stand, he 'completely lost it' at her. 'He screamed, actually screamed, on the witness stand,' she claimed. 'He was so "pissed", as he categorized it, that the judge had to calm him down. 'He had a full-blown outburst, yelling that I was '"crazy, unhinged, and a stalker." And yes, he said all that while shouting.' Townsend is set to be cross-examined by Lopez's attorney later in the week, and is likely to be grilled about a video she shared online showing her surprising Lopez at his home. The actor was seen shirtless in the video confronting Townsend outside his home, refusing to open his gate and yelling at her. As he called her a 'crazy b****', Townsend told a process server to throw the lawsuit through his gate. 'See you in court, Mario,' she said as she left his home. Lopez subsequently filed a restraining order against Townsend, saying in court documents that he 'was harmed by the most recent harassment when Ms. Townsend arrived at his home on Father's Day with a process server.' He said she was 'causing chaos and fear for his young children and family members who witnessed the event.' 'She then escalated the harm by posting a video of the service on TikTok, exposing his family and home address to millions of viewers, placing them at risk of further harassment, public ridicule, and potential physical danger,' the documents said. Townsend filed her lawsuit over an Instagram post Lopez shared of news clip from 2009, in which the then-cheerleader claimed she was suffering a rare neurological disorder called dystonia and gyrated in front of the cameras Lopez obtained a restraining order against Townsend after she showed up at his home, which she said surprised her as 'he's escalating this into a public spectacle when it could have been resolved quietly through civil litigation' Townsend told Radar that she was baffled by the restraining order, and said: 'I truly don't understand what he's thinking.' 'He's escalating this into a public spectacle when it could have been resolved quietly through civil litigation,' she said. 'Filing for a restraining order feels like a clickbait tactic, and from both a PR and legal standpoint, it's likely to backfire. Especially when the very behavior he's calling 'harassment' is precisely what he did to me.' Townsend's lawsuit against Lopez for defamation is still pending, and is based on his Instagram post sharing the archival footage of Townsend with 'dystonia.' She became widely known as the 'vaccine cheerleader' when she made the claims in 2009, and was mocked for appearing to fake her symptoms. It is unclear if Lopez and Townsend have any other connection besides the actor sharing the TV news footage to his Instagram over a year ago.
