V. Stiviano may have caused the downfall of Donald Sterling, but the Los Angeles Clippers owner’s alleged mistress said she never intended to hurt him and wasn’t the one who released a recording of his racist remarks.
Sterling was heard on a recording released last weekend admonishing Stiviano for associating with black men and bringing them to Clippers games. The ensuing fallout led NBA commissioner Adam Silver to ban Donald Sterling for life, fine him $2.5 million, and recommend that other NBA owners vote to force him to sell the team.
V. Stiviano said she never intended for that to happen and “never wanted any harm to Donald,” her lawyer Siamak Nehoray told the Los Angeles Times.
Nehoray claimed that someone released the tape for money, but that it was not Stiviano herself.
“My client is devastated that this got out,” he said.
Nehoray also claimed the V. Stiviano and Donald Sterling did not have a romantic relationship, noting that she is a hard-working waitress and volunteered to work with crime victims before going to work with Sterling as an “archivist.”
“It’s nothing like it’s been portrayed,” the lawyer said. “She’s not the type of person everyone says.”
The “everyone” Nehoray is referring to includes Donald’s estranged wife, Rochelle Sterling. She has filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court against Stiviano painting her as a calculated gold digger who seduces older wealthy men in exchange for money and gifts.
Here are details of the lawsuit, per the Los Angeles Times :
Rochelle Sterling alleges that her husband used community property to buy Stiviano a 2012 Ferrari, two Bentleys and a 2013 Range Rover, worth a total of more than $500,0000.
Sterling also allegedly gave Stiviano $1.8 million to buy a duplex on West 4th Street near the Beverly Center last December, according to the suit, which claims that Sterling additionally provided her with $240,000 for upkeep and living expenses.
V. Stiviano herself has not spoken out about the Donald Sterling controversy.
