The Dallas Cowboys reportedly paid $2.4 million to settle claims made by four of their cheerleaders that a former team executive had secretly recorded them on his cell phone while they undressed.
The explosive allegations are contained in an ESPN report centered on Rich Dalrymple, the Cowboy’s longtime and recently retired PR executive. Four members of the Cowboys famed cheerleading squad claim that Dalrymple secretly filmed them changing clothes during an event at AT&T Stadium in 2015.
In addition, a fan has come forward accusing Dalrymple of taking “upskirt” pics of Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones’ daughter during an online stream at a 2015 draft event.
NEW YORK, NY – MAY 09: Dallas Cowboys Executive Vice President and Chief Brand Officer Charlotte Jones Anderson attends the 4th Annual Town & Country Philanthropy Summit at Hearst Tower on May 9, 2017, in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Town & Country)
Dalrymple and the Cowboys, however, flatly deny that anything untoward took place, at least intentionally.
“People who know me, co-workers, the media and colleagues, know who I am and what I’m about,” Dalrymple said according to ESPN. “I understand the very serious nature of these claims and do not take them lightly. The accusations are, however, false. One was accidental and the other simply did not happen. Everything that was alleged was thoroughly investigated years ago, and I cooperated fully.”
The Cowboys issued a statement saying that their investigation uncovered no wrongdoing.
“The organization took these allegations extremely seriously and moved immediately to thoroughly investigate this matter,” Cowboys communications consultant JimWilkinson told ESPN. “The investigation was handled consistent with best legal and HR practices and the investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing. . . . If any wrongdoing had been found, Rich would have been terminated immediately. Everyone involved felt just terrible about this unfortunate incident.”
Still, the question remains, if the alleged pics and videos were either accidents or did not occur, why did the Cowboys pay the cheerleaders $2.4 million as part of a settlement attached to a non-disclosure agreement?
ARLINGTON, TEXAS – NOVEMBER 25: The Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders perform during the halftime show of the NFL game between Las Vegas Raiders and Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium on November 25, 2021, in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
Furthermore, ESPN’s Don Van Natta claims that Dalrymple announced his retirement after ESPN launched their investigation into the voyeurism claims.
Van Natta writes that Dalrymple’s retirement came came “several weeks after ESPN began interviewing people about the alleged incidents and just days after ESPN contacted attorneys involved in the settlement.”
Dalrymple, for his part, disputes that timing.
As ESPN reports, “In his statement, Dalrymple said the allegations ‘had nothing to do with my retirement from a long and fulfilling career, and I was only contacted about this story after I had retired.'”
As Van Natta writes, “A signed copy of the May 2016 settlement agreement obtained by ESPN includes a nondisclosure agreement in which the four women, three of their spouses and Cowboys officials agreed to never speak publicly about their allegations.”
A former cheerleader familiar with the allegations and unnamed in ESPN’s report claims that the alleged Dalrymple incident was known to the girls on the squad.
“It hurt my heart because I know how much it affected the people who were involved,” the ex-cheerleader explained. “It was a very … shut the book, don’t talk about it, this person is going to stay in his position … They just made it go away.”
Dalrymple worked in the Cowboys organization for 33 years.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.