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Dec. 6 (UPI) -- Pro Football Hall of Famer Warren Moon has requested a leave of absence from the Seattle Seahawks after being sued for sexual harassment and sexual battery. The 61-year-old was named in a lawsuit filed on Monday in Orange County, Calif., according to multiple reports. Moon has denied the allegations, according to a text message he sent to Seattle's KING 5 TV. The lawsuit was first reported by the Washington Post.
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"We have accepted Warren Moon's request for a leave of absence as the club's radio analyst," a Seahawks spokesperson said Wednesday. "Brock Huard and Dave Wyman will assume the role of radio analyst indefinitely. This week, Dave Wyman will join Steve Raible, Jen Mueller, and John Clayton from Jacksonville on 710 ESPN Seattle and KIRO Radio 97.3 FM."
The woman who made the claims was hired this summer as an executive assistant to Moon, according to KING 5 TV. She alleged that Moon required her to wear thong underwear and share his bed during business trips, according to the Post. She also accused Moon of grabbing her crotch this year during a trip to Seattle. She also accused Moon of pulling off her bathing suit and slipping a drug into her drink during an October trip to Mexico, according to the Post.
USA Today and KING 5 TV obtained the lawsuit.
"Soon after she began her employment, Moon demanded [the assistant] submit to a variety of unnerving sexual and perverse controlling arrangements, including sleeping in the same bed with him on all business trips, providing him unfettered access to the bathroom every time she showered, wearing skimpy lingerie while in the obligatory single room, obtaining prior approval for her wardrobe, and being subjected to continuous unwanted and unsolicited sexual advances," the lawsuit said, according to multiple reports.
"Whenever [the assistant] expressed reservations about these outrageous 'job duties,' Moon insisted this was 'just the way it is,' and threatened [the assistant] that unless she was 'comfortable' with him, he'd 'find someone else who was.' Moon insisted these 'requirements' were part of the job, and made clear that [the assistant]'s employment depended on her acceptance and compliance with Moon's lascivious behavior, demands and orders."
Moon was named the the 1989 NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year, an award given to players for excellence on and off of the field.
He was also sued in 1995 for sexual harassment, but the case was settled out of court.
The 32-year-old woman has asked for a jury trial.
Moon was a nine-time Pro Bowl selection. He played 10 seasons for the Houston Oilers, three seasons for the Minnesota Vikings and spent two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Seahawks. He played his final NFL season in 2000.
