During the second day of Stefon Diggs’ assault trial, his former chef and accuser, Jamila Adams, appeared to dodge a question about whether her legal team demanded $5.5 million from the NFL free agent.
As reported by NBC Sports, Diggs’ legal team questioned Adams whether her lawyer ever reached out to the former New England Patriots star to make a settlement demand. She appeared evasive in a response, explaining that Diggs offered her $100,000 to “recant” her statement. Judge Jeanmarie Carroll struck the response from the record and warned Adams not to be evasive when answering questions from the defense.
“You’re responsible for answering questions that are put to you,” Judge Carroll said. “If you don’t understand the question, you can say that. And I’m sure counsel will rephrase it. If you can’t hear a question, tell them that as well. But courtrooms function in, and especially trials unfold, in a question and answer format. This is not an opportunity for you to interject your own narrative and evade responding to questions the court deems appropriate. And if you continue to do so, your entire testimony may be stricken. Am I clear?”
Questioning resumed shortly after, and Diggs’ defense team asked her more directly about the alleged $5.5 million demand her lawyers made to the NFL player. In response, she cited attorney-client privilege and avoided answering the question again. She said she was unable to answer the question on whether someone had made a demand on her behalf. Diggs’ team has argued that Adams previously demanded $19,000 from him the day before she filed a criminal complaint, but she said it was for past wages, not a potential settlement. In February, when she publicly spoke about her allegations against Diggs, she said she never asked for money from him.
Adams has accused Diggs, her former employer, of assault and felony strangulation over a salary dispute, which she has since denied. During her testimony on the first day of the trial, she claimed that she was in a sexual relationship with Diggs before she was hired to work as his chef. “It started out as friends. ... Became sexual, and we would meet up, hang out, and we decided I will come work for him in February of 2025,” Adams said while on the stand.
