- A Los Angeles judge dismissed an abuse lawsuit filed against shock rocker
Marilyn Manson . - Ashley Walters, his former assistant, had filed two complaints against Manson over the last year.
A Los Angeles judge dismissed former Marilyn Manson assistant Ashley Walters' amended abuse and wrongful termination lawsuit on Wednesday, citing "too few facts," and claims beyond the statute of limitations.
Walters, who was Manson's assistant between 2010 to 2011, initially sued the artist over alleged sexual harassment, abuse, sexual battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress and wrongful termination in May 2021, according to court documents.
On Wednesday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael L. Stern said that "plaintiff has plead too few facts too keep this case in court, and too late," and dismissed the case with prejudice, which means Walters cannot sue Manson over the same allegations in the future.
Walters' attorney Tanya Sukhija-Cohen claimed in court that her client "couldn't exercise her claims because she was unaware they occurred until the memories came back," during a support group meeting with other women who have alleged Manson abused them. Sukhija-Cohen added that the alleged threats that Walters experienced were not "materially different," than ones "Game of Thrones" actor Esme Bianco has alleged in her sexual abuse lawsuit against Manson.
Manson's attorney Gene Williams, said that the amended suit relied on "a contradiction they can't get out of, where the same incidents she didn't recall dissuaded her from filing."
In her lawsuits, Walters accused Manson of forcing her to work for two days straight, during which she says she feared Manson's frequent violent and angry outbursts. Walters had filed an amended lawsuit on March 11 after Stern called into question the timeline of her allegations in relation to the existing two-year statute of limitations.
Walters accused Manson of pushing her onto his "influential industry friends and associates," including an actor who forcefully kissed her in September 2010. She also claimed that Manson harassed her by forcefully kissing her.
Attorneys representing Walters from Valli Kane & Vagnini LLP and Hadsell Stormer Renick & Dai LLP told Insider they were "deeply disappointed," in the case's dismissal and indicated that they will appeal the decision.
"If allowed to stand, this decision would drastically limit the ability of victims of abuse to obtain justice through the legal system," the attorneys said in the statement. "While the court based its decision on the timeliness of Ashley's claims and not the merits, we disagree with the court's interpretation of the law as it applies to equitable estoppel and the delayed filing of abuse claims."
In an emailed statement, Ashley Walters told Insider that "Nobody gets to choose exactly how they process abuse or threats."
"I am disheartened in the court's decision today not just for my case, but for the message it sends to other survivors out there trying to balance how they process abuse with arbitrary court deadlines," Walters said in the statement. "We will not let this hurdle stop us from shining a light on what happened to me and others."
Manson's team denied all of the allegations in both of Walters' lawsuits and asked a judge in April to dismiss her claims without an opportunity to file another amended complaint.
Attorneys representing Manson did not immediately return Insider's request for comment.
If you are a survivor of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800.656.HOPE (4673) or visit their website to receive confidential support.