Marilyn Manson 2023 Lawsuit Against Ex Evan Rachel Wood Gutted

(LOS ANGELES) – Marilyn Manson’s lawsuit against his former girlfriend, “Westworld” actor Evan Rachel Wood, was dismissed by a California judge on Tuesday, claiming she manufactured public allegations that he sexually and physically abused her during their relationship and urged other women to do the same.

Manson’s lawsuit, filed last year, claims that Wood and another woman identified as a defendant, Illma Gore, defamed Manson, willfully caused him emotional pain, and destroyed his music, television, and cinema career. It claims they used deception, including a forged FBI letter, to get more women to come forward with sexual abuse allegations and to advise them on what to say about Manson, whose official name is Brian Warner.

The portion of the lawsuit dealing with the disputed FBI letter, which Wood denies forging, was dismissed by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Teresa A. Beaudet. Beaudet also removed a portion that claimed Wood and Gore used a checklist obtained on an iPad to establish abuse charges against Manson.

The judge did not rule on the FBI letter’s merits but determined that the evidence that the defendants used it to recruit other women and harm Manson was speculative and thin. Beaudet discovered no evidence that Wood and Gore created the checklist. She stated that the chances of Manson winning either phase were slim.

Beaudet’s decision was based on California legislation intended to safeguard defendants’ free speech from being stifled by lawsuits.

“We are very pleased with the Court’s ruling, which affirms and protects Evan’s exercise of her fundamental First Amendment rights,” Wood’s attorney Michael Kump said in a statement. “As the Court correctly determined, Plaintiff failed to demonstrate that his claims against her have even a smidgeon of merit.”

Manson’s attorney stated that he intends to file an instant appeal.

“The ruling is disappointing but not unexpected,” Manson’s attorney Howard King said in an email. “The Court telegraphed this outcome when it refused to consider the bombshell sworn declaration of former plaintiff Ashley Smithline, which detailed how women were systematically pressured by Evan Rachel Wood and Illma Gore to make false claims about Brian Warner.”

Other parts of the lawsuit remain because they were not subject to Wood’s motion, including allegations that Gore hacked Manson’s email, phone, and social media accounts, created a phony email to fabricate evidence that he was sending illegal pornography, and “swatted” him, allegedly with Wood’s approval, by sending authorities to his home.

Several women have sued Manson recently with allegations of sexual and other abuse. Most have been dismissed or resolved, including one filed by “Game of Thrones” actor Esme Bianco.

And for over two years, police and prosecutors have conducted a criminal investigation into Manson. Prosecutors indicated in September that they needed more evidence from detectives before determining whether to charge him. The victims have not been named.

Unless they come out publicly, the Associated Press does not usually name anyone who claims to have been sexually abused.

In 2017, when the #MeToo movement gathered speed, Wood said she had been raped and mistreated and offered testimony to a Congressional committee in 2018 without naming anyone. Wood then named Manson in an Instagram post in February 2020, alleging he “horrifically abused me for years.” They announced their relationship in 2007 and were briefly engaged in 2010 before splitting up. In March, HBO aired a documentary about the allegations.

According to Manson’s lawsuit, Wood had only positive things to say about Manson during their relationship, and she revealed nothing about his abuse of her for 10 years until she met Gore, an artist described in the lawsuit as Wood’s on-again, off-again love partner.

SOURCE – (AP)