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- The Dallas Cowboys paid $2.4 million in a settlement with four cheerleaders over voyeurism allegations.
- The cheerleaders accused a senior team executive of peeping on and recording them while they undressed in their locker room.
- Read more news about the NFL here.
A newly published report has revelead that four Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders were paid $399,523.27 each in a settlement agreement which totaled $2.4 million overall over voyeurism charges against a senior team executive.
The accusations of voyeurism were levied against Cowboys senior vice president for public relations and communications Richard Dalrymple.
According to a ESPN report, “Each of the cheerleaders was paid $249,523.37, with three law firms getting the rest — a total of $801,906 in fees and expenses. Another $600,000 was paid by the Cowboys over the course of the next year, with three cheerleaders getting $12,500 a month for a year and the fourth being paid $150,000 after her final season.”
ESPN reports that, according to documents and people with knowledge of the situation, one of the cheerleaders claimed that she saw Dalrymple “standing behind a partial wall in their locker room with his iPhone extended toward them while they were changing their clothes.”
He reportedly got into the cheerleaders’ dressing area by using a security key card at the back door of the locker room.
Dalrymple reportedly told the Cowboys that when he entered the locker room he didn’t know they were inside. Once he realized it, he says he left to area immediately.
Related: Former WFT Cheerleaders Still Being Ignored By The NFL Despite Incriminating Jon Gruden Emails
The women heard the door leading to the nook area open, sources said. “We’re in here!” the women shouted. They assumed it was a security guard who immediately left, according to an account from multiple sources and relayed in a letter from the cheerleaders’ attorneys to the team.
Several minutes later, one of the cheerleaders noticed a man’s hand and a black cellphone pointed in their direction, according to several sources. At the time, the women were going “from fully clothed to completely unclothed,” a cheerleader later told a Cowboys HR official and the team’s general counsel, Jason Cohen. The cheerleader who saw the cellphone was certain the man was lurking and taking photos or video of them, according to multiple sources.
That woman ran toward him, shouting, “Hey, what are you doing?” The cheerleader, a veteran of several years on the team, immediately recognized Dalrymple, who she said dashed away, according to the letter. The other women did not see the man, according to the letter.
When they reported the incident to a security guard they claim he wanted to report it to the Arlington police department, but that didn’t happen.
One of the cheerleaders told ESPN, “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 and the Cowboys deny any wrongdoing occurred with regard to the cheerleaders
“People who know me, co-workers, the media and colleagues, know who I am and what I’m about,” Dalrymple said in a statement. “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.”
Jim Wilkinson, a communications consultant for the Cowboys, issued a statement claiming that after an investigation Dalrymple had done nothing wrong.
“The investigation was handled consistent with best legal and HR practices and the investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing,” he stated.
And yet, the team paid $2.4 million in a settlement with the four Cowboys cheerleaders which also included a nondisclosure agreement “in which the four women, three of their spouses and Cowboys officials agreed to never speak publicly about their allegations.”
Dalrymple was also issued a formal written warning by the team in October 2015 and had his access to the cheerleaders’ locker room revoked.
ESPN also reports that Dalrymple was accused of taking “upskirt” photos of Cowboys Senior Vice President Charlotte Jones Anderson, the daughter of Jerry Jones, in the Cowboys’ war room during the 2015 NFL draft.
Related: NFL Fans Call Out Jerry Jones For His 2-Word Response When Asked About The WFT Investigation
Dalrymple retired from his role with the Dallas Cowboys earlier this month. After 32 years working for Jerry Jones, no mention was made of his retirement on the team’s website.
Coincidentally, Dalrymple’s retirement came just days after ESPN contacted attorneys involved in the settlement.
Dalrymple said in his statement that 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.”