The attorney for Aqib Talib said in a statement Friday that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback is evaluating his legal options after being sued for allegedly threatening a woman during a traffic dispute in December 2010.
According to The Tampa Tribune, Talib allegedly threatened to "put a cap in" the plaintiff, Betty Atwood of Tampa. Citing the lawsuit, the report states Atwood was driving near an intersection when Talib "negligently caused them to collide." Atwood said in the suit that Talib threatened her before police arrived.
Atwood is suing Talib for $15,000, citing physical injuries from the crash as well as depression, anxiety, and "severe emotional distress" from Talib's threat, according to the suit.
Talib's attorney, Jay Reisinger, called the allegation "false" and referred to the accident as "very minor" in a statement made on his client's behalf on Thursday.
The statement claims that Atwood placed a 911 call to report the accident and was interviewed by police at the scene. When contacted by The Tribune, Tampa police had no accident report from the alleged altercation and could only verify that a traffic accident occurred on that date.
"At no time during the 15 months since the accident has Ms. Atwood ever reported this alleged statement to the police," Reisinger's statement read. "Further, we have witness statements confirming that Aqib never made a statement of this nature toward Ms. Atwood. Following the accident, Ms. Atwood discovered that Aqib played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In order to leverage a substantial monetary settlement, she concocted a tale to increase her alleged damages."
Reisinger said Talib would have no further comments on the matter, but that he was confident the issue would be "resolved favorably" once all the facts are known.
Talib, 26, has had several run-ins with the law since he entered the NFL as a first-round pick by the Bucs in 2008.
He is scheduled to stand trial March 26 on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon stemming from a domestic incident. He was suspended without pay for one game to start the 2010 season for violating the NFL's personal-conduct policy after he was arrested in August of 2009 for allegedly punching a cab driver.
