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A lawsuit accusing Linda McMahon, Trump’s pick for Education Secretary, of not preventing abuse in the 1980s during her time leading W.W.E. has been temporarily halted by a judge. The pause is due to a pending decision on a state law concerning similar cases.
Written by Kate Selig
A lawsuit against Linda McMahon, the former executive of World Wrestling Entertainment who was chosen by President-elect Trump for education secretary, has been put on hold by a federal judge in Maryland. This decision was made to await the outcome of another court’s review of a new state law related to similar cases.
The lawsuit alleges that Ms. McMahon and her husband, Vince McMahon, who were in charge of W.W.E. from the early 1980s, did not take action on believable accusations that an employee of the organization had sexually abused "ring boys," who helped out with tasks before wrestling matches. The McMahons have strongly refuted the claims.
Judge James K. Bredar from the U.S. District Court in Maryland approved a request from the defendants to pause the case until the Maryland Supreme Court makes a decision on the constitutionality of a law passed in 2023. This law removed the time limit for filing civil lawsuits related to child sexual abuse, giving more individuals the opportunity to bring forth cases. Judge Bredar stated that it was necessary to wait for the state Supreme Court’s ruling as it could impact the outcome of the current lawsuit.
Five individuals who used to work as ring boys filed a lawsuit in late October, shortly before Ms. McMahon was chosen as education secretary, alleging that they were abused in the 1980s by Melvin Phillips Jr., a former ringside announcer and ring crew chief who passed away in 2012. The plaintiffs, who were between the ages of 13 and 15 at the time, had encountered Mr. Phillips during their work.
The legal case was brought against the McMahons, WWE, and TKO Group Holdings for not fulfilling their responsibility to protect the boys from harm, despite being required to do so. They were accused of not taking necessary steps to prevent the abuse.
Laura Brevetti, the lawyer representing Ms. McMahon, stated to CNN that the allegations made in the lawsuit against her client are unfounded. Brevetti described the lawsuit as containing false accusations, exaggerations, and misrepresentations about Linda McMahon.
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