close
close

Yiamastaverna

Trusted News & Timely Insights

US country singer Garth Brooks responds to a rape and sexual assault lawsuit
New Jersey

US country singer Garth Brooks responds to a rape and sexual assault lawsuit

US country singer Garth Brooks has denied allegations that he sexually assaulted a former hair and make-up artist and was “not the man they portrayed me to be”.

Warning: This story contains graphic content that may be disturbing to some readers.

Brooks released a statement in response to a lawsuit from a woman who claims he raped her at a Los Angeles hotel in 2019.

The woman, known by the pseudonym Jane Roe, filed the lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court.

It is alleged that Brooks, who is the second best-selling artist of all time in the US, took advantage of her financial situation by offering her more frequent work and then engaging in a pattern of sexual harassment and assault.

Brooks’ statement was sent to US Weekly and Billboard and accused the complainant of trying to blackmail him.

“For the past two months, I have been endlessly plagued with threats, lies and tragic stories about what my future would be if I did not write a multi-million dollar check,” he said.

“It was like a loaded gun was being waved in my face.

“I want to play music tonight,” he added.

“I want to continue our good deeds in the future. It breaks my heart that these wonderful things are now in question. I trust the system, I’m not afraid of the truth, and I’m not the man they made me out to be.”

Ms. Roe is represented by attorney Douglas Wigdor, who also represented women who accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual misconduct.

In the lawsuit, the woman said she had worked for Brooks’ wife, country singer Trisha Yearwood, since 1999 and began working for Brooks in 2017.

She claimed an assault occurred while she traveled to Los Angeles with Brooks, who performed at the Grammy Awards in October 2019.

The singer usually traveled in a group, but this time he and Ms. Roe were alone on his private jet.

The lawsuit said she was in disbelief when she realized Brooks had booked a one-bedroom hotel suite and she didn’t have a separate room.

Shortly after her arrival, she claimed he appeared naked in the bedroom doorway and raped her.

The lawsuit states that he then proceeded as if nothing had happened and expected her to do his hair and makeup right afterward.

The lawsuit also details an incident when she was at Brooks’ home earlier this year.

It said Brooks appeared naked in front of her, grabbed her hands and placed them on his genitals.

The woman’s suit also says Brooks exposed himself to her many other times, talked to her about sexual fantasies and sent her explicit text messages.

She said she was forced to continue working for Brooks due to financial difficulties, which he knew about and took advantage of.

“We applaud our client’s courage in pursuing her complaint against Garth Brooks,” Wigdor LLP said in a statement to ABC.

“The complaint filed today shows that sexual predators exist not only in corporate America, Hollywood, and the rap and rock and roll industries, but also in the world of country music.”

The lawsuit said Brooks filed his own preemptive lawsuit last month in federal court in Mississippi, in which both he and the woman remain anonymous.

In court filings in the case, the plaintiff, named John Doe, says the allegations are “completely untrue” and that he first learned about them in July when she threatened to publicly sue him if he didn’t give her millions of dollars.

He asked a judge to stop the woman from “intentionally causing emotional distress, defamation and a false invasion of privacy.”

In Thursday’s statement, Brooks said, “We filed a lawsuit against this individual nearly a month ago to speak out against extortion and defamation of character.”

“We submitted it anonymously in the interest of the families of both sides.

“Hush money, no matter how much or how little, is still hush money. In my mind, that means I’m admitting to behavior I’m incapable of – ugly acts that no human being should ever do to another.”

“We are confident that Brooks will be held accountable for his actions, and his efforts to silence our client by filing a preemptive lawsuit in Mississippi were nothing other than an act of desperation and attempted intimidation,” Wigdor LLP said .

“We encourage others who may have been victimized to reach out to us as no survivor should suffer in silence.”

LEAVE A RESPONSE

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *