Ex-WWE Star Calls Out Janel Grant for Undermining Real Victims With Trafficking Lawsuit

Former WWE employee Janel Grant’s sexual trafficking lawsuit against Vince McMahon is far from over. While a resolution hasn’t been reached yet, it appears a former WWE star has called out Grant for undermining real victims with her lawsuit.

While speaking to Monte and the Pharaoh, Shelly Martinez was asked how she feels about the allegations against Vince McMahon. She questioned if taking money in those situations makes a person’s claims less believable.

Martinez brought up how Sable accepted money and then returned to WWE, and how Janel Grant took money but came back when it stopped. Shelly wondered if people lose credibility when they accept money in these kinds of situations.

Martinez said this kind of thing isn’t new; not just in wrestling, but in entertainment or even outside of it. She believes that when someone is rich, these situations often happen, and people become part of their “payroll.”

The former WWE star said that even if what’s happening is questionable, if everyone agrees to it, she still feels sorry for those who later regret it and suffer emotionally. Everyone has a limit and she said she had many chances in her career to take money or accept offers that would have put her in a tough spot, but she always chose not to.

“So, this is… but here’s the thing. When a person takes money for a transaction—in your mind, and I’m not saying this as fact—I’m just asking, doesn’t that kind of nullify everything? You brought up Sable, right? That whole thing went on, and Sable took money and then came back. Janel Grant—she was taking money, and when the money ran out, she’s back. So, is there a point where people lose credibility when they take money?

Yes. And here’s the thing. Not only is this not new in wrestling, in entertainment in general, this is nothing new. And you don’t even have to be in entertainment—if you’re rich, these things happen. You’ve got the Janel Grants and other people like that on your payroll or whatever. That’s just how it is.

To me, if people are consenting to it—even if the acts are horrible—I still feel for people who have to live with trauma from decisions they made because they felt it was what they needed to do. Everyone has their threshold. I kind of have a strong opinion on this, because whether I was just a model, actress, young girl in Hollywood, or in wrestling—I’ve had so many opportunities to take money, be in situations, be ‘taken care of.’ But I had a choice, and I didn’t do it.”

Shelly made it clear she doesn’t judge people who do take the money. It just wasn’t something she thought was worth it for her. What bothers her is when people later try to call someone out after they already knew what the deal was from the beginning. She said that hurts real victims, especially women, who didn’t agree to those situations but are treated as liars because of other people’s actions.

The former WWE star explained that there’s a difference between being pressured into something and agreeing to it at the time but changing your story later. She said being paid off afterwards is not the same as agreeing to something and then acting like you didn’t. She thinks this makes others afraid to speak out, especially women and it’s not fair how people are judged.

When the Janel Grant news came out, her first thought was to ask what Vince McMahon did that was actually illegal. She admitted some things may seem creepy or morally wrong, but that doesn’t always mean they break the law. She said the difference between what’s legal and what’s moral is important to understand.

“I’m not judging people who do, because to me, it just wasn’t worth it. I’m very aware of how things work, and that’s why it annoys me when these things become big scandals or ‘gotcha’ exposés. Because a lot of times, people knew what the deal was—and they were okay with it at the time. That sucks, but that’s the reality. And it ends up hurting women—people—who are in bad situations they didn’t choose, who aren’t ‘down,’ and then when something happens to them, they get dismissed as liars.

It hurts people who really need help. People who didn’t want to be in those situations, but were offered hush money afterward. That’s not the same thing as being part of something willingly and then changing the story later. If you don’t want to do it, you’re off the payroll. That’s different.

And it pisses me off, because it makes people not want to speak up. Especially women. And then when you do speak up, you get labeled or judged unfairly. So when the Janel Grant thing came out, I was like, ‘So what exactly did he do that was illegal?’ I’m not saying what he did wasn’t creepy—morality is one thing, legality is another. That’s all I’m saying.”

At the end of the day, Shelly Martinez simply speaks from experience and it’s clear she is trying to take an objective stance on this. Regardless, we’ll have to see how Janel Grant’s lawsuit will progress in the comin months.

Do you agree with Shelly Martinez’s perspective on credibility, morality, and legality in situations like Janel Grant’s lawsuit? Sound off in the comments.

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