Marilyn Manson Settles Rape Lawsuit

 

Marilyn Manson and a woman who sued the singer for rape have reached a settlement before it could go to trial next week. Adam Wolf, the attorney for the woman who filed as a Jane Doe, filed a notice of settlement with the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, on Wednesday. The lawyer will submit a request to dismiss the case within 45 days.

Doe’s suit, filed in 2021, alleged that the singer, whose real name is Brian Warner, raped her and deprived her of food, sleep, and a sense of safety. She claimed he threatened to “bash her head in” if she reported the abuse, which she said occurred in 2011.

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“I was fully prepared for trial and never in a million years thought I would ever settle, but over the past two-and-a-half years I have silently endured threats, bullying, harassment and various forms of intimidation that have intensified over the past few weeks,” Doe says in a statement to Rolling Stone. “Marilyn Manson attended my deposition, and I was forced to answer seven hours of aggressive questioning with him staring at me from across the table. I’ve been told that this almost never happens, as it’s cruel, and that a main reason for it would be to intimidate and inflict emotional distress on a victim.

“I never cared about money and only ever wanted justice, but if we had gone to trial, I could have lost my right to anonymity and been victim-blamed on a large and public scale,” she adds. “Most importantly I could have risked losing the freedom to tell my story, and that is worth more than anything in the world.”

The terms of the settlement are not public. “Brian is pleased that, just as previous lawsuits were abandoned without payment or settled for pennies on the dollar, this plaintiff has now agreed to drop her suit in exchange for an insurance payment representing a fraction of her demands and far less than the cost to Brian of proceeding to trial,” Warner’s attorney, Howard King, says in a statement.

The settlement marks Warner’s second such deal this year. In January, he avoided litigation with Game of Thrones star Esmé Bianco with a settlement. Bianco claimed Warner had raped and battered her sexually; she also claimed he had violated California human trafficking laws. He denied the allegations.

More than a dozen women have come forward with similar allegations since early 2021, when actress Evan Rachel Wood accused Warner of abusing her. She also participated in a two-part docuseries, Phoenix Rising, in which she outlined her allegations. (Warner has sued Wood and her friend, Illma Gore, for defamation. A judge struck down many of Warner’s claims in May; Warner’s lawyer is appealing the decision.)

Many of Warner’s accusers spoke with Rolling Stone in 2021 for an investigation into their claims, which Warner denied. Several filed legal actions against him. Suits by Warner’s former assistant, Ashley Walters, and model Ashley Morgan Smithline were dismissed. (The former because of the statute of limitations; the latter due to a missed deadline. Smithline later recanted her allegations.)

“If any other victims are reading this,” Doe says, “please know that you are loved and supported even if it doesn’t feel that way, and that in spite of everything I’ve been through I don’t for one second regret speaking up.”

“I am honored to have supported Ms. Doe,” Doe‘s lawyer, Wolf, says. “My law firm stands with those who bravely push back against misconduct in all forms, especially by high-profile, powerful men. We are dedicated to fighting for justice, no matter how long it takes. You are not alone.”

Another lawsuit by another Jane Doe, alleging years of grooming and abuse that began when she was a minor, is ongoing and remains the only outstanding legal action against Warner. The other Doe claims she first met Warner 1995 when she was 16 years old. She alleged that members of Warner’s band watched him sexually assault her. He maintained contact with her, according to her suit, over many years, and when she was 19, he “perpetuated his grooming, manipulation, exploitation and sexual assault of Plaintiff” and allegedly coerced her into sex. Through his attorney, Warner denied the allegations.