Erin Andrews broke down into tears while testifying in court on Monday as part of her $75 million lawsuit.
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Alleging negligence and invasion of privacy, Andrews sued Michael Barrett, the convicted stalker who filmed the videos, West End Partners, who own the Nashville Marriott at Vanderbilt University where she was staying to cover a football game for ESPN, as well as the Windsor Capital Group, who manage the hotel.
Andrews accused hotel employees of disclosing her room number to Barrett, who in turn booked the room next door and gouged peepholes into her door. Barrett was already sentenced back in 2010 to two-and-a-half years in prison for stalking and sharing the video online.
In court on Monday, Andrews' testimony revealed a blogger friend had notified her in 2009 of a video in circulation that showed her naked. The sports broadcaster reportedly screamed so loudly that employees became concerned.
"I even got a call from the hotel I was staying at because they wanted to know if everything was okay because I was screaming so loud," Andrews told the jury, according to ABC News.
Andrews also later contacted 911 when a person -- later deemed a photographer -- climbed up her balcony at her Atlanta home, resulting in her deciding to stay at her parents' house.
According to the Dancing with the Stars co-host, the hardest part of this whole ordeal was initial widespread belief she had released the video footage herself for attention and fame.
"This is me naked. Nobody knew that it was a stalker. Nobody knew that the Marriott had put him next to me," Andrews reportedly explained in court. "It was being said that I did this for a publicity stunt. All we kept thinking as a family 'This is me! Who did this to me and who let this happen?'"
At the time, Andrews' lawyers required her to make a statement confirming she was the woman in the video and it was not done purposefully so the FBI would get involved and investigate. Andrews and her father reportedly had to watch the video with authorities to prove the sports reporter didn't set the whole thing up herself.
"I said 'Dad, I'm going to puke,'" Andrews testified. "We put my hand over my body because it was so embarrassing that the FBI had to watch it in front of me."
An estimated 16.8 million people worldwide viewed the peephole videos or still photos taken from them between July 2009 and January 2016, according to The Tennessean.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
