BJ Whitmer's victim says she has faced hardship in recent months.
On June 4, 2023, BJ Whitmer was arrested and charged with strangulation and second-degree burglary. He was later indicted on charges of first-degree strangulation and second-degree burglary in September. In the initial incident report, it was noted officers saw red marks and bruising that was consistent with strangulation on the alleged victim's neck. The alleged victim, Jaime Hawn, subsequently came forward and shared a message for survivors.
In March 2024, Whitmer received five years probation and a 120-day home incarceration, as he took an Alford plea. At the time, Fightful spoke directly with the victim, who was not on board with this plea and read a victim impact statement to communicate her concerns to the judge.
Jaime Hawn has now launched a GoFundMe and wrote that she was asking for help as a homeless mother of three. She claimed that her family was homeless "as a result of careless, egotistical and inhumane actions of AEW (All Elite Wrestling) and Chris Peck", who works as one of AEW's legal counsel. Hawn claimed that Peck's behavior caused "catastrophic destruction" in her life.
Hawn wrote that the GoFundMe funds would be used for obtaining immediate shelter, covering transportation costs to get her children to and from school and doctor's appointments, living costs, and groundwork for rebuilding a happy, healthy, and loving home, as they lost their belongings that were in storage.
Hawn then claimed that her family became homeless this fall due to the "uphill battles" she had faced, and she stated that the mental and physical strain of the criminal and civil court process has been "crippling." Hawn wrote that after they lost her home, they stayed in her car as she sought other shelter resources, which were scarce, and they have let to secure a place to stay. She said that survival had been challenging for a while, and the situation worsened recently when the engine in her car blew. Hawn wrote that without the means to have the car towed or repaired, it was left on the highway and removed by the county.
Hawn went on to discuss the criminal case against BJ Whitmer and claimed that Chris Peck "single-handedly" had an outcome of the case, including his sentencing and her ability to recover. Hawn wrote that she had endured a traumatic experience, and she claimed that she was "robbed of any chance of justice when Chris Peck breached the terms of the very NDA he forced me to sign at one of my most desperate moments." Hawn claimed that Chris Peck, without being subpoenaed or having any legal obligation, "wrongfully provided an inaccurate description of my intentions and false context of my engagement with AEW (Megha Parekh), dating back to June 2023." Hawn wrote that the date/times regarding her engagement with Parekh had been documented.
Hawn claimed that Peck "blatantly lied to the Defense attorney and the Prosecution team," and she claimed that AEW has been made aware of "Peck's actions, the impact his actions had on the outcome of my case, and the devastating effect" it has had on her life. Hawn then claimed that, despite having ample time and opportunity to address the situation, they have not done anything. Hawn wrote that she never intended to jeopardize or harm AEW; she said that her initial contact with the company was meant to inform them that Whitmer had been arrested, and he was in jail. Hawn claimed that her first outreach to AEW was to Megha Parekh, as Whitmer had said that she helped him at times.
Hawn continued by claiming that she told Parekh that contacting AEW was her last resort, as local law enforcement had not responded to prior incidents of abuse. Hawn claimed that she emailed Parekh on June 10, 2023, and Megha seemed to understand that she simply wanted "policy change and a committed plan to address domestic violence in the wrestling industry in effort to prevent future abuse. " Hawn claimed that she was failed by AEW after they gave her an initial glimmer of hope, and she was also failed by the legal system. Hawn claimed that she was being failed by "a billion-dollar company who knows of their errors and has watched a mother of three lose everything."
Hawn went on to claim that she may lose her children in response to a CPS investigation due to being homeless with no available resources for shelter. Hawn reiterated that she needed help in her fight to survive and keep her children. Hawn wrote that this was her life, and she wanted to bring light to an issue "to prevent others from being manipulated by a billion-dollar company at their most vulnerable state".
Hawn then provided a timeline of events, starting with Whitmer's alleged attack and his arrest. This timeline includes contact with AEW's then Chief Legal Officer Megha Parekh, with Hawn citing date/time stamped calls, texts, and text messages. She wrote that she provided evidence of her accusations and statements. Hawn claimed that Megha asked her to send over any information she had to support her claims. She wrote that Parekh took action, and Whitmer was terminated.
Hawn's timeline includes a description of resources that Parekh offered her, including therapy resources and a home security system, as well as itemized financial support for therapy and basic living expenses that could not be met due to medical conditions following the attack. Hawn claimed that she discussed partnering with AEW " to strategically create and raise awareness of Domestic Violence, as well as target policy changes to prevent people from going through similar situations and to show how companies can support victims of domestic violence."
Hawn then claimed that in September 2023, she received an email from Chris Peck, stating that he was responding to her email to Parekh, and she would no longer be involved. Hawn claimed that Peck told her that he was unaware of her situation, and he did not have any record of anything she discussed with Parekh. Hawn claimed that Peck asked her to detail the entire story, which she said was unreasonable given that she was the survivor of abuse. Hawn claimed that all of the files and communication she had with Parekh was forwarded to him. Hawn wrote that, in October, Parekh apologized because the transition had not been smooth. Hawn claimed that Peck showed no empathy in their exchanges, and he said that he needed her to forward all of the evidence of her documented abuse to him. Hawn claimed that all of this had already been provided to Peck by Parekh.
Hawn continued by claiming that Peck made it seem like she was trying to take advantage of the situation, and when discussing additional financial support to help with rent, Peck changed his tone and asked what was needed to "make 'this' go away" as a final amount so they could part ways. Hawn claimed that this changed her perspective of the situation, as she previously thought that she was working with AEW to potentially create positive change, whereas Peck made it clear that would not happen.
Hawn then claimed that her next conversation with Peck included outside legal counsel as representation for AEW, and she was "bullied by the Latham attorney with accusations that I was attempting to threaten AEW with intentions for financial gain." According to Hawn, she then received an email from Peck, in which he stated that she would need to sign an agreement in order to receive the financial support payment.
Hawn claimed that she asked Peck to verify that he was not in contact with Whitmer's defense attorney, and Peck said that Whitmer's attorney requested an itemized list of any form of financial assistance AEW gave her. Hawn wrote that she provided this information to the prosecution for transparency, and she asked Peck and the prosecution to inform her about information provided to Whitmer's defense, so she gave them contact information. Hawn also claimed that she asked the prosecution to review her emails with Parekh for further context. However, Hawn claimed that no one attempted to verify the information Peck provided, and neither side contacted Parekh to fact-check.
According to Hawn, the NDA stated confidentiality for all parties, and the agreement prohibited the sharing of any details of engagement between her and AEW, unless court-ordered or subpoenaed. As a result, any shared information without these orders would be a breach of contract. Hawn claimed that after the agreement was executed, Peck " engaged with Whitmer's Defense attorney again stating that my intentions for my engagement with AEW was purely for financial gain," and the defense did not verify his claims before forwarding them to the prosecution.
Hawn claims that Parekh reached out to the prosecution and the defense in 2024 at her request to clarify the nature of their conversations, but neither responded. Hawn wrote that she was never looking for anything other than empathy and help her in a challenging situation. She claimed that Parekh aided her, but Peck "painted" her as a "hysterical woman." She also wrote that Peck made her worst fears as a victim come true.
Before his arrest, Whitmer worked as a producer in AEW/ROH, and he had been with the company since 2019. He was terminated immediately after his arrest, and AEW reached out and offered their support to those affected.
If you or anyone you know is a victim of domestic violence, there is help. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24 hours a day by phone at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), chat, or text (Text "START" to 88788).
