Bennett Raglin/Getty ImagesFinally, after all these years a new Dallas spinoff is coming...to a Los Angeles courtroom.
Days after getting sued by a former housekeeper who claimed the erstwhile Pamela Ewing pulled a gun on her, Victoria Principal is fighting back with a countersuit, alleging that it was the ex-maid who did the assaulting.
Per the complaint filed today in Los Angeles Superior Court and obtained by E! News, the Dallas star alleges that Maribel Banegas "engaged in outrageous, threatening violent conduct" after Principal fired her only two days into the job, leaving the actress fearing for her safety.
Principal accuses the housekeeper of assault, trespass, civil extortion, animal cruelty and negligence. Principal also claims Banegas seriously injured the actress's pooch and then, after getting canned, refused to leave her house, pounding on kitchen counters and screaming "give me money" in a failed extortion bid.
Banegas' suit, filed in L.A. Superior Court on Friday, contends that she was fired by Principal after taking too long to walk the dog. When Banegas asked for her final payment, the suit claims, Principal went upstairs and, instead of retrieving her checkbook, returned with a gun and threatened to kill Banegas.
Banegas says she was so scared she hid in a room in the residence until the police showed up. The incident, the worker alleges, caused her severe emotional distress.
Describing Banegas as a 6-foot, 160-pound "formidable figure," Principal admits to grabbing the gun, but says she did so only because she feared for her safety. Principal says she was forced to call the cops after Banegas locked herself in the guest house and demanded payment.
The next morning, Principal says, she woke up to find her pet dog writhing in pain, which a veterinarian diagnosed as three injured vertebrae supposedly caused by abuse from Banegas.