Lawyers are Pissed at Antonio Brown Acting Like a Total Dink in His Deposition
Source – In a 35-page motion requesting court sanctions this week, an opposing attorney in a property damage lawsuit against Antonio Brown accused the star NFL wideout of “tumultuous tirades”, “defiant rants” and “profane language” that the lawyer claims derailed the taking of a deposition in the case in late September. … According to the opposing attorney, Brown wrecked the proceedings with a litany of “reprehensible behavior”. …
*Arrived nearly 30 minutes late to the deposition.
*Acted “belligerent and pugnacious, refusing to answer the most routine of questions, despite there being no objection to the questioning coming from his counsel.”
*“[C]hanted, over and over, as if a mantra, a narrative of his own warped concept of the proceeding.”
*“Acting as if he was above the rule of law, [Brown] proceeded to make a mockery of the deposition process. [Brown’s] antics were so unreasonable that barely twenty [20] minutes into the deposition, his counsel asked for a break [so] he could speak with [Brown] about his demeanor.”
*“When the deposition resumed, [Brown] began texting on his cell phone. Regardless of multiple requests from his own counsel, and from the undersigned, [Brown] continued texting.”
*“After approximately 20-30 minutes, [Brown] required another break. When the deposition resumed [Brown] increased his level of obstructive behavior. At one point, [Brown] refused to answer any questions, instead saying ‘next question’ no less than 10 times.”
*“Soon thereafter, [Brown] started announcing a countdown, starting at ‘five [5] minutes,’ and counting down the minutes thereafter. Before noon [Brown] left the conference room.”
According to the allegations in the motion, Brown’s lawyer waited a few minutes and then left the proceedings, then returned and announced that Brown had left and “volunteered, to the effect, that Plaintiff’s counsel could now file its motion for sanctions.”
I might be the world’s biggest Antonio Brown supporter. I wish he had common sense enough to not toss furniture off a 14th floor balcony at a luxury apartment complex, fart on his doctor, or include the woman who accused him of waving his dong at her in a group text where he’s sending around photos of her kids. I wish he kept his damn phone in his damn pocket and was catching six Brady passes for 90 yards and a touchdown every week. But since I can’t have those things, for right now I’ll settle for this.
Honestly, I don’t hate this move. No matter what the issues are in the lawsuit, no matter who’s right or wrong, you have to respect his methods. These are the actions of a man who knows how to play to his strengths.
Antonio Brown is self-aware enough to know that what he’s really good at is running routes, getting open, making catches and acting like a petulant, self-possessed manchild. And only one of those skills is useful when it comes to giving a sworn deposition. So he used that one. This is a skill he developed in Pittsburgh while undermining Ben Roesthlisberger and making life miserable for Mike Tomlin. And then perfected in Oakland, shooting his way out of town in a matter of weeks.
I mean, what do we expect him to do? It’s not like he’s going to bandy words with professional attorneys. He’s not Alec Baldwin in “Malice”:
Brown’s superpower is childish passive/aggressiveness. On a scale unmatched, even by the most hormonal, unhinged teenager. And he used it to thwart his enemies. Again, I’d rather have him being “belligerent and pugnacious” toward the Redskins’ defensive backs instead of eyerolling, chanting and yelling “next question” at some lawyer. But I can still appreciate a guy using his God-given, world class dickishness to his advantage.