Dee Devlin turns to victim blaming in public defense of fiancé Conor McGregor
On Tuesday, November 26, Dee Devlin took to Instagram to speak out in support of her long-time fiancé, Conor McGregor. This comes after a jury recently determined that the Irish sports icon assaulted Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel back in December 2018.
"What kind of WOMAN are you?!" Devlin expressed in her statement shared on her Instagram stories this Tuesday.
Although she doesn’t directly mention Nikita Hand in her statement, it’s clear who she’s referring to.
In her remarks, Devlin took issue with Hand for being "on a three-day binge," yet she omitted the fact that McGregor mentioned in court that he had been "partying hard" before the incident. Additionally, she failed to note that McGregor admitted in court to having shared a bag of cocaine with Hand and another woman while heading to the hotel where the assault took place.
Devlin went on to say, "I will make sure my sons understand that there are women like you out there."
On November 26, 2024, Dee Devlin shared updates on her Instagram stories.
In reference to the CCTV video recorded during the December 2018 incident, Devlin makes a startling statement: "It seems to me that you are the one committing a sexual assault in the elevator. It appears that everyone is trying to distance themselves from you."
Regardless of what Devlin thinks she observed in the CCTV footage, it’s undeniable that a jury determined McGregor was responsible for assaulting Hand. McGregor, who insists that he is innocent, has stated his intention to appeal the decision made last week.
Devlin continues by stating that she and McGregor addressed these matters privately quite some time ago and that they have emerged even stronger from the experience.
She wrapped up her message on Instagram stories by saying, "Let those who are without sin be the first to throw a stone."
Dee Devlin's Instagram updates from November 26, 2024.
Around the same time she shared her statement on her Instagram stories Tuesday, Devlin also uploaded a picture of herself and McGregor with two of their kids to her Instagram feed.
"My partner and I have built a wonderful life side by side," she wrote in the post.
"I care deeply for him, I have complete faith in him, and I truly believe in him! Our four wonderful children, with their joyful smiles and happy spirits, reflect the kind of man he is and the family we've built together. No one has the right to judge our relationship; we have a strong bond of trust and love for each other."
"Neither anything nor anyone will alter that."
"Our family is resilient!"
On Tuesday, McGregor posted Devlin's message to his Instagram stories, where it has garnered over 110,000 likes by Wednesday afternoon. He included a heart face emoji and a praying hands emoji in his share.
On November 27, 2024, Dee Devlin shared a post on Instagram.
After the jury's verdict on Friday, McGregor expressed his thoughts on social media. In posts that have since been removed, he referred to Hand as a "malicious liar" and described her court testimony as "absurd."
Devlin and McGregor's relationship dates back to before McGregor rose to fame. They became engaged in 2020 and are now proud parents of four children.
Devlin was present in court with McGregor just once during the entire trial, and that was on the last day. She was photographed with him at the High Court in Dublin when the jury announced its verdict on Friday, November 22.
On November 22, 2024, Dee Devlin and Conor McGregor were seen arriving at the High Court in Dublin. (RollingNews.ie)
Before reaching their decision, Justice Alexander Owens reminded the jury to rely on solid evidence rather than making unfounded assumptions or placing blame on the victim.
In reaction to the jury's verdict, Rachel Morrogh, the Chief Executive of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC), addressed the topic of blaming victims.
"...this situation and the public discussions surrounding it have raised concerns about how certain segments of Irish society perceive victims of sexual violence," Morrogh stated.
"It shows that there is still an environment of blame and criticism that should not exist in today's society."
"It's important to understand that trauma impacts individuals in various ways, and we must act quickly to change the lingering negative attitudes surrounding sexual violence."
Morrogh mentioned that the DRCC has received feedback from individuals claiming to have noticed a rise in harmful victim-blaming attitudes in the past two weeks.
Considering the widespread issue of sexual violence in Ireland, where more than half of women will face some type of it at some point in their lives, many individuals impacted by this problem have adopted those attitudes.
On Tuesday, several users on X accused Devlin of blaming the victim in his Instagram stories.
"One individual commented on X that Dee Devlin's rejection of a court decision in favor of victim-blaming a woman who suffered terribly at the hands of her husband is truly unethical, receiving over 5.7k likes."
"You're holding this victim accountable for actions that YOUR MAN was also guilty of," remarked another user, whose comment has garnered over 2.8k likes.
"I don't care how honest you are with each other in your relationship. Eventually, you have to hold your unfaithful husband accountable." another user commented on X, with the post receiving over 2,000 likes.
Devlin publicly supported her fiancé on the same day that several major retailers in Ireland revealed they would be removing McGregor's merchandise from their stores.
Proximo Spirits, the company that took over Proper No. Twelve Irish Whiskey—created by McGregor in 2018—has announced that they will stop using the UFC fighter's name and image in their promotional efforts for the whiskey from now on.
Retailers and brands have taken steps to respond to calls for a boycott, partly initiated by the Rape Crisis Network of Ireland (RCNI), which gained traction following the jury's ruling last Friday.
In the meantime, Reportd.ie, an Irish platform that allows individuals to report incidents of sexual assault anonymously, has gained significant attention for its reasoning on why people should consider unfollowing McGregor on social media.
