In July 2021, Humphries, along with Gina Menichino, filed a complaint against Mitchell Taylor Button, husband of former Boston Ballet dancer Dusty Button, accusing him of sexually abusing her.[13][14] Humphries was in an apprentice program with the Boston Ballet in 2016 when the couple allegedly "sexually and verbally abused her, forced her to live with them and isolated her from her family."[15]
In September 2021, the federal complaint was updated, accusing the Buttons of sex trafficking and sexual abuse of seven dancers, including a minor, age 11,[14][15] between 2007 and 2021.[16] The plaintiffs include Humphries and Menichino, as well as Rosie DeAngelo and Dani X.[3] The complaint states, "This is a case about a couple who exploited their position of power and influence in the dance world to sexually abuse young dancers across the country."[17]
In 2022, court documents included claims of federal sex trafficking and forced labor violations against both Dusty and Taylor Button, as well as separate accusations about Taylor Button for assault, battery, false imprisonment, and sexual exploitation of a minor.[16] The Buttons' lawyer, Marc Randazza, filed a motion to dismiss the case, denying any wrongdoing.[18]
On July 8, 2022,[19] Randazza "filed a third-party counterclaim in U.S. District Court in Nevada," in which they claimed having been in a consensual, "loving and supportive" relationship with Humphries.[20] The counterclaim also includes a U.S. civil suit was filed against the Edmonton Oilers' owner, Daryl Katz, alleging he paid Humphries $75,000 for sexual favors.[20] Katz was 53 at the time; Humphries was 17. In the counterclaim, Randazza wrote, "To the extent that Sage Humphries claims she was abused and sex trafficked, the Buttons agree — however, this abuse and trafficking was not at their hands, but at the hands of a series of older men."[21] Randazza further claimed, "Humphries was literally a child prostitute to a billionaire, and her mother assisted her in laundering the money she was paid and in trafficking her to Katz."[21]
Katz's lawyer, Robert Klieger, has denied the claims of sexual misconduct but admits Katz and Humphries had met in 2016 regarding Humphries's film project.[20] Katz has confirmed he arranged to pay $75,000 toward her film.[20] Key evidence against Katz involves screenshots of text conversations between Humphries and Katz, but the authenticity of the texts remains in question.[20] The alleged text messages do not contain sexually explicit content but show a desire for secrecy.[21] According to Humphries's claims, the texts would have been received while Taylor Button had control of her phone.[20]
Humphries's lawyer, Sigrid McCawley, denied the claim against Katz[19] and referred to the counterclaim against Katz as a "meaningless sideshow" to distract from the Button case.[20] Less than a month later, in August 2022, the couple voluntarily withdrew their claims against Katz after being provided with reliable evidence to the contrary;[22] their lawyer issued an apology and requested that the court strike all relevant references from the record.[23]