Miss Florida lost her crown and now she wants $15m

These days, it seems you can’t throw an eyelash curler without hitting some scorned pageant contestant on the head.

The latest controversy to cloud the Miss Universe company is that of Génesis Dávila, aka Miss Florida, who was stripped of her crown after organisers accused her of breaking the rules by using external vendors to help her get ready.

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According to Grant Gravitt, executive producer of the Miss Florida USA pageant, the 24-year-old let a professional hair and makeup artist into her room before the show – an advantage the other 64 women didn’t have.

“We finally had substantial proof to link her and her vendors to her room on an evening which they were not allowed,” said Gravitt. “We have a zero-tolerance policy on rules. Whether it’s something major or minor, it’s all about keeping an equal and level playing field. Unfortunately, our title holder sought an unfair competitive advantage, and that’s just not acceptable in our system.”

Dávila, who now loses the chance to compete in the 2017 competition, was subsequently asked to hand back her crown, with runner-up Linette De Los Santos given the title of Miss Florida USA by default.

“I didn’t think it was going to happen, especially like this,” De Los Santos said when she received the title. “I’m just excited to have this opportunity.”

However, there’s no way Dávila is letting her crown go without a fight. After failing to show up to a scheduled meeting to surrender her crown, her lawyers have announced that she’ll be suing the Miss USA organisers for $15 million in defamation damages.

“I am innocent,” Davila told People. “I have faced many challenges in my life, but nothing like this. I have waited for this for so long. I’ve worked so hard for this.”

Grab the popcorn, because it seems like the latest pageant controversy could be going for a while.

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