A New York judge has dismissed all but one of Kesha‘s counterclaims against her alleged abuser Dr. Luke.
Pitchfork has learned, New York Supreme Court Justice Shirley Kornreich has dismissed nearly every claim that Kesha has lodged against Dr. Luke, real name Lukasz Sebastian Gottwald, further examining Kesha’s allegations that she was drugged and raped by him.
Kesha claimed that Dr. Luke had committed a “hate crime” which is prohibited by a New York statute, however, the judge said that the singer’s claims don’t prove that the producer harboured any hate towards women.
“There are no facts to support Gottwald’s animus toward women. Gottwald is alleged to have made offensive remarks about Kesha’s weight, appearance, and talent, not about women in general,” Kornreich wrote.
“Every rape is not a gender-motivated hate crime”
She also noted that Kesha is unable to use this claim to cover a ten year period of abuse broadly and that there must be evidence of physical violence or property damage. Kesha’s claims that Dr. Luke abused her on a plane in in 2005 and raped her his hotel room in 2008 fit the judge’s requisites, however, the judge noted “the claim is time-barred,” because the statute forbids prosecutors from charging someone for a crime that was committed more than five years ago.
The judge also rejected claims that Dr. Luke inflicted emotional distress on the popstar.
“Her claims of insults about her value as an artist, her looks, and her weight are insufficient to constitute extreme, outrageous conduct intolerable in civilized society,” the judge said.
This is because Kesha did not provide specific times and places for the claims.
A number of Kesha’s attempts to make her contract between her and Dr. Luke void were also rejected, however, the judge didn’t dismiss one related to contractual issues. A 13th April conference call has been set to discuss a schedule for this lawsuit.
Unfortunately for Kesha the judge has also dismissed all these claims without giving the singer an opportunity to amend her complaint. This mean she’s unable to update it with the specific information that the judge thought was lacking from a number of her disputes.
The Hollywood Reporter reports that the judge’s decision that the court doesn’t have any jurisdiction to hear discrimination claims, because the events noted didn’t occur in NYC, may see the case return to California where Kesha originally filed a lawsuit. That case was originally paused because her contract stated any disputes would go through New York.
It’s becoming an extremely lengthy and confusing case but regardless this is another blow for Kesha who has had little good legal news this year. You can read Kornreich’s full document below (via The Hollywood Reporter).
Kesha recently posted on Instagram letting fans know that Sony had offered her freedom from her contract if she retracted her rape allegations. A spokesperson for Dr. Luke said her allegations were false.
