Joey Ryan has filed a lawsuit against three of the women who accused him of sexual assault, claiming their allegations are false and it has cost him almost $20,000 in monthly income.
According to a lawsuit filed in the United States District and Central Court on September 24 (h/t to Heel By Nature), Ryan claims his reputation and livelihood have been seriously damaged after they made false allegations against him in June. After the allegations were made public, Ryan (real name Joseph Ryan Meehan) claims he has lost almost $20,000 in monthly income including his live event appearances, merchandise and various social media endeavors, as well as from promoting Bar Wrestling.
The full list of requests in the lawsuit includes Ryan (referred to as “Plaintiff”):
- $200,000.00 in economic damages as to each of the defendants or the amount lost by Plaintiff as a result of defendant’s conduct multiplied by the months from June 21, 2020 to the date of the award of economic damages
- $5,000,000.00 as to each of the defendants in non- economic damages.
- Actual damages
- Plaintiff’s costs, investigatory fees and expenses to the fullest extent provided by law
- Award punitive, exemplary damages against defendants and in favor of Plaintiff in the sum of $10,000,000.00 by reason of defendants’, and each of them, malice, hatred, ill-will, despicable and intentional acts
- Awarding Plaintiff such additional and further relief as the Court deems just and proper
Ryan is suing for economic and non-economic damages, as well as seeking to have the accusers retract their statements as well as prevent them from making any future defamatory statements. Ryan is also seeking an injunction permanently restraining and enjoining defendants as set forth in Claim VII including:
- Preventing defendants from making and publishing the defamatory statements or any iteration of the defamatory statements as set forth above and herein
- Ordering defendants to retract the defamatory statements as set forth above and herein
- Ordering defendants to direct any, and all, websites that defendants posted the defamatory statements as set forth above and herein, to delete the defamatory statements
Ryan was accused of sexual assault in June by multiple women during the #SpeakingOut movement. The allegations led Bar Wrestling to shut down, and IMPACT Wrestling fired him on June 22. Ryan addressed his IMPACT Wrestling status in a nearly 60-minute video and said there was a clause in his IMPACT contract that stated he can’t be fired for any actions that took place prior to signing that deal. He noted that since all of the accusations allegedly took place before he signed the deal, he was considering legal action.
