Marilyn Manson Sued for Sexual Assault of a Minor

Marilyn Manson is facing another lawsuit for alleged sexual assault. A minor, identified as Jane Doe, is suing the musician for allegedly grooming and sexually assaulting her on multiple occasions in the 1990s. The woman claims the abuse started when she was 16.

The woman said she met Manson in 1995 after an all-ages concert in Dallas promoted by Interscope Records and Trent Reznor's now-defunct Nothing Records, according to the lawsuit obtained by Entertainment Weekly. Jane Doe was 16 when she met Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner. She claims Manson performed "various acts of criminal sexual conduct" on her on his tour bus, including vaginal penetration and forced copulation.

Manson allegedly "laughed" at the woman, even though she was "in pain, scared, upset, humiliated, and confused" after the assault, the lawsuit reads. Manson threatened to "kill her and her family" if she told anyone about the encounter. Manson laid the "groundwork necessary to intimidate and control her," she claims, adding that he continued his "grooming, manipulation, exploitation, and sexual assault" for several years.

Weeks after the first encounter, Manson allegedly contacted Doe at home, asking for racy photos of herself and her friends to be sent to his fan club, according to the lawsuit, reports the New York Post. They spoke through an Internet chat group and he asked her to go to a performance in Louisiana in December 1995, the lawsuit reads. Manson "groomed Plaintiff by complimenting her, playing with her hair and looking at the photos and drawings she brought with her" before he allegedly sexually assaulted her again, Doe claims.

Doe claims she was sexually assaulted by Manson multiple times during a tour, then again years later in 1999 when she was 19. "Plaintiff was lured into Defendants' dark world of drugs, alcohol, sexual deviance, harassment, abuse and assault," the lawsuit reads. Doe claims Manson and his "associates" gave her drugs and alcohol and continued his abuse of her into adulthood because he allegedly started grooming her when she was a minor. Manson would allegedly be controlling and turned "hostile and verbally abusive."

The woman included Interscope and Nothing Records as defendants, accusing the record labels of negligence and "intentional infliction of emotional distress." She claims the labels knew about Manson's "obsession with sexual violence and childhood sexual assault." The labels also "aided and abetted" his behavior, the lawsuit claims.

The plaintiff came forward as multiple women shared their stories of alleged abuse against Manson. When Doe began considering filing her lawsuit, she claims Manson threatened to release sensitive information about her and hacked her online accounts. She is suing for unspecified damages.

"For too long, music industry predators have hidden in plain sight, believing they are above the law," Jeff Anderson, one of Jane Doe's attorneys, said in a statement to EW. "Today, we are demanding Warner face retribution, so he knows he will no longer escape his day in court. This is a day of reckoning."

Manson and Universal Music Group, the parent company of Interscope and Nothing Records, have not commented on the new lawsuit. In February 2021, Manson claimed all of his "intimate relationships" were "entirely consensual with like-minded partners."

At least 15 women have accused Manson of sexual, psychological, and physical abuse, including actresses Evan Rachel Wood and Esme Bianco. In 2021, Bianco filed a lawsuit, claiming she was drugged, tortured, and sexually assaulted by Manson. Earlier this month, the two sides settle the lawsuit. A lawsuit filed by Ashley Morgan Smithline against Manson was also dismissed. Manson, who denied "any and all claims of sexual assault or abuse of anyone" through his lawyers, is suing Wood and Ilma Gore for defamation.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, you can contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.