The alleged victim in the Ray McDonald case has also accused linebacker Ahmad Brooks of wrongdoing, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee writes. Brooks is being accused of assault and battery, false imprisonment and, infliction of emotional distress. The news was first reported by TMZ.
The accusation against Brooks came about following a defamation lawsuit McDonald filed against his accuser in March. At the time, McDonald was a free agent and claimed the woman defamed him and interfered with his livelihood as he struggled to find his next team. In a cross complaint filed Tuesday, she alleges that Brooks “groped her person in a sexual manner” when she was passed out from hitting her head.
For his part, McDonald, now with the Bears, has maintained the sexual encounter with the woman was consensual. The 49ers dismissed McDonald after police searched his home on Dec. 16th and his agent has claimed that he will not be implicated in the criminal case, though a spokesman with the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s office says it’s still open. It’s not immediately clear if Brooks is now the focal point of an investigation that was once centered around McDonald.
The alleged victim is represented in the civil lawsuit by prominent attorney Gloria Allred, who has been critical of the NFL’s handling of sexual assault and domestic violence cases.
Back in March, there were whispers that Brooks could be a cap casualty, but GM Trent Baalke made it clear that the player would be back in 2015.
“There has never been an indication from me otherwise,” Baalke said. “While all that was being written, I just sat back and looked at it because it was speculation based on our cap number and the cash flow that we had leading into free agency. A lot of assumptions were made, but wrongly.”
Now, Brooks’ job security with the 49ers is potentially in jeopardy once again.