Recent allegations that Edmonton Oilers owner Daryl Katz had paid sex with a 17-year-old girl have been dropped in a civil lawsuit in the United States.
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Katz’s name surfaced in a civil lawsuit brought by seven ballerinas, including Sage Nicole Humphries, against dance teacher Mitchell Taylor Button and his wife for sexual, emotional and financial abuse. In their defense, they notably argued that Katz had paid $75,000 to have sex with Humphries in 2016.
However, if they claimed that Humphries was 17 years old at the time of this alleged relationship, she was rather 18 years old, as demonstrated by her driver’s license. Button attorney Marc Randazza filed a motion in a Nevada court to remove all references to Humphries’ age last Wednesday.
According to Sportsnet, a “voluntary disclaimer” was also filed to retract any allegations against Katz. The latter, like Humphries, has always denied these allegations.
“I would like to personally apologize for any harm the erroneous factual assertions may have caused Mr. Katz and his family,” Randazza wrote in an email exchange with Sportsnet. We filed the claims in good faith, but when I doubted my ability to sustain them, I took corrective action and asked the court to remove all relevant references from the record.”