Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has petitioned a Texas civil court to dismiss a lawsuit against him brought by a woman who claims to be his biological daughter whom he now accuses of attempted extortion.
Alexandra Davis, 25, sued Jones earlier this month, claiming he paid her mother Cynthia Davis Spencer $375,000 after they had an affair in the mid-1990s that resulted in the mother’s pregnancy in 1996. Jones allegedly organized two trust funds for Davis in Arkansas, where Davis Spencer was living when she gave birth to their daughter.
In her March 3 filing, Davis asked the Dallas County court to rule that Jones’s agreement with her mother in Texas was unenforceable and to confirm that he is in fact her father.
Jones, who has been married to his wife Eugenia for nearly 60 years, has neither confirmed nor denied Davis’ allegation. The father-of-three’s lawyers didn’t refer to that allegation in Monday’s filing, but argued that their parentage allegations should see the case referred to a family court rather than a civil court.
Jones’ filing Monday says he was only sued after he refused Davis’ request to “make a deal” to “ensure he is not publicly or privately identified as her father.” On Monday at the league’s owners meeting in Palm Beach, he told reporters the lawsuit was a “personal matter.”
However, he addressed other allegations against the team, including reports that the Cowboys paid $2.4 million to four cheerleaders who the team’s longtime public relations executive Rich Dalrymple took nude photos of them in 2015 during they changed.
Dalrymple, who retired last month, has also been separately accused of taking upskirt photos of Charlotte, owner Jones’ daughter, according to a February report from ESPN. He has denied any wrongdoing.
When he first spoke about the allegations, Jones defended the club, claiming that the allegations came about because the Cowboys are a high-profile organization.
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has petitioned a Texas civil court to dismiss a lawsuit against him brought by a woman who claims to be his biological daughter whom he now accuses of attempted extortion
Davis (right) reportedly appeared on the final season of “Big Rich Texas” with her mother, Cynthia Davis Spencer. Davis Spencer was said to have received $375,000 through a trust fund in 1995 if she and her daughter agreed to remain silent about their relationship with Jones
“If you spend 30+ years saying, ‘Look at us, hey, wait, you’re looking away, look at us, we’re the cowboys’ — if you’re going down that path, then if you’re going to have some things.” that you might not want to look at, you’re going to be looked at,” he told reporters on Monday.
He also said it was in the team’s best interest to finalize the non-disclosure agreement with the cheerleaders.
“None of this was an attempt to decide guilt or innocence,” he said. “It was about what was in the best interest of the pecking order, starting with alleged victims.”
Regarding Davis and her lawsuit, attorneys for Jones alleged in Monday’s filing that it “will be the subject of other litigation that has been filed or is about to be commenced.”
“She is not entitled to the relief she seeks, and the court has no authority to grant it,” Jones’ filing reads.
According to the lawsuit, Davis was bound by a non-disclosure agreement that her mother, a former American Airlines ticket agent, signed when she was just one year old. The agreement created two trusts for mother and daughter as long as they kept Jones’ paternity a secret.
Davis, who works as an assistant to former Presidential Physician and current US Congressman Ronny Jackson (Republican of Texas), “has lived her life fatherless and in secrecy, fearing that if she and her mother told anyone who she was… Dad would lose financial support or worse,” the lawsuit reads.
She has asked the court to release her from the confidential agreement her mother agreed to when she was a baby and be legally recognized as the daughter of Jones, whose estimated 2019 net worth was $8.5 billion, according to Forbes .
The Dallas Morning News reported that Davis Spencer and her daughter were the cast of “Cindy and Alex” on the third season of the Dallas reality TV show “Big Rich Texas.” The duo was the newcomer for the final season, which cast Davis Spencer as a single mom who “lives on a trust fund.”
Jones has been married to Eugenia Jones, 75, for 59 years and they have three children, Stephen, 57, Jerry Jr., 52, and Charlotte Jones Anderson, 55. The Jones children all work with the Cowboys.
Jim Wilkinson, a spokesman for Jones, and attorney Andrew Bergman previously declined to comment on the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges that Jones began courting Davis Spencer in 1995 while she was working at an American Airlines ticket office in Little Rock, Arkansas, just as she was in the process of divorcing her husband.
It goes on to say that Jones “left and avoided” Davis after she was born on December 16, 1996 in Little Rock.
‘The combined impact of the above agreements and Cynthia’s divorce proceedings resulted in this [Davis] never have a legal father,” the lawsuit states.
‘Defendant Jones’ only role in Plaintiff’s life to date, other than avoiding her, has been to keep her from ever revealing his identity.’
A DNA test between Davis and Davis Spencer’s former husband revealed he was not the legal father and did not have to pay child support, the lawsuit alleges.
Davis claims that when Jones found out Davis Spencer was going to be a single mother, he negotiated a “hush money” agreement.
Jones reportedly agreed to “provide ongoing financial support to Cynthia and the plaintiff through indirect means and with concealed personal identity so long as Cynthia remains silent that it was him.” [Davis’] Father,” the lawsuit says.
“If Cynthia did not maintain this silence, support would end at Defendant Jones’ discretion and Cynthia would allegedly be in breach of the deal.”
The settlement also included monthly and annual payments for Davis until she was 21, with additional payments for her 24th, 26th, and 28th birthdays, according to the lawsuit.