The Cowboys organization paid a total $2.4 million settlement to members of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders following an accusation in 2015 that former Senior Vice President Rich Dalrymple attempted to watch and record them while undressing in their locker room. Dalrymple just retired from his 32-year position as the team’s head of public relations and communication on February 2nd.
In a story published today by ESPN’s Don Van Natta Jr., four cheerleaders made the accusation through legal representation and the matter was eventually settled in May of 2016. While he did receive a formal warning from the organization, Dalrymple remained in his job for another six years before his recent retirement.
ESPN’s story also cites an incident involving Dalrymple and Jerry’s daughter Charlotte Jones Anderson, another team executive. During the live stream of the Cowboys War Room for the 2015 NFL Draft, Dalrymple was supposedly caught taking “upskirt” photos of Charlotte from behind her chair.
This was caught by a fan following the web stream of the draft. He posted on Facebook to Charlotte Jones Anderson to make her aware of the matter.
Though Dalrymple has maintained his innocence in these matters, his retirement two weeks ago is now seen in a very different light. ESPN alleges that they’d already begun contacting members of the Cowboys organization several weeks before Rich’s announcement.
This story, bad for any team at any time, is especially jarring with the NFL’s current climate of workplace misconduct accusations. The federal investigation into the Washington Commanders is ongoing, and only months ago there was Jon Gruden’s firing from the Las Vegas Raiders for racist language in company emails.
Hopefully these were just isolated incidents involving a single individual in the Cowboys organization.
