There are now 23 lawsuits filed against Deshaun Watson

By Amy Woodyatt, CNN

Updated 1327 GMT (2127 HKT) June 1, 2022

Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns looks to pass during Browns OTAs at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus on May 25, 2022 in Berea, Ohio.

(CNN)Another woman has filed a lawsuit againstDeshaun Watson, bringing the number of civil suits accusing the Cleveland Browns quarterback of misconduct, including in some cases sexual assault, to 23.

Nia Smith, a professionally licensed cosmetologist in Texas, alleges she had three encounters with Watson starting in 2020, whose behavior, she said, «grew worse during every massage,» according to a civil suit filed Tuesday. Watson allegedly asked the plaintiff to massage inside his anus, exposed his erect penis, tried to grab the plaintiff's buttocks, touched her between her legs and repeatedly requested sex in incidents spanning three sessions, the lawsuit alleges.Smith alleges that she was completely traumatized by her interactions with Watson and quit her job at the salon.Watson, in a statement sent via his lawyer Rusty Hardin, «vehemently» denied the allegations Tuesday, and has repeatedly denied the accusations of sexual assault and misconduct made against him.Read More«Deshaun Watson vehemently denies the allegations, just as he has since she first discussed them with members of our firm in March of last year. She repeated the allegations on social media in August and he denied them then,» Hardin said in a statement.«The only thing new about her contentions is the embellishment making them more extreme than prior versions. Deshaun's denial remains the same,» he continued.Smith, who was 21 at the time of the alleged incidents, initially decided not to file a civil suit but says she changed her mind after watching a segment