The lawsuit filed by Marilyn Manson‘s former assistant Ashley Walters accusing the shock rocker of sexual assault, battery and harassment has been dismissed, Billboard and Rolling Stone report.
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled that the statute of limitations of Walters’ claims, which date back to when she was employed by Manson between 2010 and 2011, had expired.
The suit was first filed in May 2021. As Rolling Stone reported, lawyers for Manson, born Brian Warner, had originally called for the suit’s dismissal earlier this year, arguing that the statute of limitations had passed. Walters then filed an amended claim in March of this year, maintaining that she had repressed memories of Warner’s alleged actions until a series of therapy sessions in 2020.
In a statement to Rolling Stone about her case’s dismissal, Walters says, “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 continues. “We will not let this hurdle stop us from shining a light on what happened to me and others.”
A rep for Warner declined to comment to Rolling Stone.
Walter was one of several women who came forward with abuse claims against Warner after actor Evan Rachel Wood, the musician’s ex-fiancée, accused him in February 2021 of having “horrifically abused [her] for years.” Three others, including actor Esmé Bianco, model Ashley Morgan Smithline and an anonymous Jane Doe, have also filed lawsuits against Warner, which are still ongoing. Warner has denied all accusations.
Wood made further allegations against Warner in her documentary Phoenix Rising. Warner has responded with a defamation lawsuit against her.
For anyone affected by abuse and needing support, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or if you’re unable to speak safely, you can log onto thehotline.org or text LOVEIS to 1-866-331-9474.
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