Marilyn Manson is being sued over allegations of sexual assault and grooming of an underage girl in the 1990s.
According to Rolling Stone, the lawsuit was filed in Nassau County Supreme Court on Long Island, New York and names Manson (real name Brian Warner) and his former record labels Interscope and Nothing Records. The lawsuit details a number of instances of sexual assault and grooming from when the plaintiff was 16 until she was 19. (Plaintiff, who is now an adult, is identified as “Jane Doe” in the lawsuit.)
Two incidents named in the lawsuit happened in 1995 in Dallas and New Orleans. At the time, Doe was only 16, and the legal age of consent in both Texas and Louisiana was and still is 17. Other locations of abuse named in the lawsuit include California and New York. Per CBS News-New York, the state’s “Adult Survivors Act” that was passed in May 2022 allows those that experienced sexual assault a one-year window to file a lawsuit against their abuser(s) beginning in November 2022 regardless of the time of abuse.
This isn’t the first sexual assault lawsuit against Warner. However, this is the first time a lawsuit involving Warner is also going after his former record labels. According to the lawsuit, “Defendants Interscope and Nothing Records were aware of Defendant Warner’s practice of sexually assaulting minors, and aided and abetted such behavior. As a result of Brian Warner’s sexual abuse and assault, enabled and encouraged by Defendants Interscope and Nothing Records, Plaintiff has suffered severe emotional, physical, and psychological distress, including shame, and guilt, economic loss, economic capacity and emotional loss.”
The lawsuit also notes, “Defendant Interscope and Nothing Records expressly and implicitly represented that the band members, including Defendant Warner, were not a sexual threat to their fans and others who would fall under Defendant Warner’s influence, control direction, and guidance.”
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual help, help is available via the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN.) Trained staff is available 24 hours a day at the Nation Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) offering safe, confidential service. Additionally, a confidential live chat is available at Online.Rainn.org.