Miss Florida USA 2017 Genesis Davila wants her crown back. To regain her crown, she filed a $15 million lawsuit against the pageant for defamation.
The 24-year-old former beauty queen filed the lawsuit on Monday with a Miami-Dade circuit court. She asked the judge to issue an emergency injunction to return the title to her, reported Fox News.
Davila learned of her dethronement only through social media after she saw a Facebook post which showed the runner-up being given her title. The pageant management explained the dethronement of Davila to her alleged use of a professional hair and make-up artist which is banned under contest rules, stated an Instagram post of the beauty contest organizer, reported Newsobserver.
Richard Wolfe, lawyer of Davila, belied the accusation of the pageant that the beauty queen got professional help. He said Davila did her own make-up, and he accused Grant Gravitt Jr., boss of the pageant, of cropping out the date of the Instagram to falsely smear the dethroned beauty queen.
The pageant gave Davila’s title to Linette de los Santos from Sunny Isles who will represent the state in the Miss USA pageant. Davila was crowned on July 16 at the Parker Playhouse in Fort Lauderdale. On July 17, Davila went to Gravitt’s office in Hollywood to sign her contract worth $100,000 in benefits and endorsements such a competition evening gown from La Casa Hermosa, cocktail wear clothes by Elan International and custom-designed necklace from Carroll’s Jewelers.
Besides accusing Davila of using a professional make-up artist, Wolfe said that Gravitt also said she lied about her citizenship since Davila was born in Puerto Rico and she was seen in a hotel lobby on July 15.