The sexual assault lawsuit that Marilyn Manson‘s former assistant Ashley Walters filed against the shock rocker has been dismissed, according to documents viewed by ABC Audio.
Walters first filed the lawsuit against Manson, born Brian Warner, in May 2021, months after his ex Evan Rachel Wood alleged that he’d abused her in a February 2021 Instagram post.
Walters’ suit was initially dismissed in 2022, with a judge ruling at the time that that statute of limitations on her claims had expired. Her case was revived in 2023 after an appeal, in which Walters’ lawyers argued that she’d repressed memories of Warner’s alleged assaults, and thus her claims could extend past that usual statue of limitations due to the delayed discovery rule.
However, in now dismissing Walters’ case once more, the judge ruled, “There is no triable issue of material fact.”
“Plaintiff’s claims are time barred,” the dismissal ruling reads.
“The fight is not over. This ruling only highlights the reason we stand with survivors and victims of abuse,” says James Vagnini of Walters’ law firm, Valli Kane & Vagnini LLP. “This is not a finding that Mr. Warner did not commit the heinous acts he’s been accused of. Rather, the court did not accept the reasons Ms. Walters set forth for coming forward with her claims when she did. We will continue our fierce support for Ms. Walters to ensure that perpetrators of physical, sexual and psychological abuse are not given a free pass by the legal system.”
“We are disappointed in this decision, but the fight is not over,” says Walters’ legal team with Hadsell Stormer Renick & Dai, LLP. “The delayed discovery rule exists specifically to address situations like Ms. Walters’, where the abuser’s actions have prevented the victim from coming forward sooner. Abusers should not be able to benefit as a result of their abuse. Mr. Warner did not argue that he never committed these horrific acts against Ms. Walters, because he can’t. He hung his hat solely on the argument that it is too late to hold him accountable.”
“Victims deserve the ability to seek justice when their abuser has used tactics to prevent them from coming forward,” the statement continues. “This is a situation we see time and time again, and it seems the law hasn’t caught up to the science on what’s right for victims. But this is not the end of the road.”
Warner’s attorney, Howard King, says, “It’s gratifying, after all these years, to have a judge who carefully looked at the actual facts and concluded that, once again, Brian Warner was wrongfully accused. Justice delayed is still justice and is much appreciated even though it came with great personal cost. Now Brian can move on.”
Walters was one of several women to publicly accuse Warner of abuse following Wood’s initial post, along with actress Esmé Bianco and model Ashley Morgan Smithline. Bianco’s case was settled, while Smithline later recanted her allegations.
Warner denied all allegations and relaunched his career in 2024 with the album One Assassination Under God – Chapter 1. He’s also returned to touring.
If you are affected by abuse and needing support, or know someone who is, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673). You can also chat online at thehotline.org or online.rainn.org, respectively.
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