CONTENT WARNING: The following article contains discussions and descriptions of sexual assault and abuse.
Ashley Walters, Marilyn Manson‘s former assistant, is suing the artist for sexual assault, battery and harassment.
The lawsuit follows another put forth by Game Of Thrones actor Esme Bianco back in April. Bianco’s lawsuit alleges sexual assault, physical abuse and human trafficking by Manson. As it stands, more than a dozen women have claimed Manson was abusive towards them, including Evan Rachel Wood, who claimed Manson “horrifically” abused her for years.
Since the allegations first came to light, Manson has been dropped by his record label and long-time manager Tony Ciulla.
According to a report from The Cut, Walters filed her complaint on Tuesday in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County. In her complaint, she alleged that Manson was a terrifying boss who frequently made violent outbursts, made her work for 48 hours straight on multiple occasions and told his friends to kiss and grope her.
Walters was a 26 year old aspiring photographer when she was first contacted by Manson, the legal documents posted by The Cut detail. He reached out to her over Myspace in 2010, asking to collaborate with her. At first, she thought it was a joke, but after speaking on the phone, he invited her to his West Hollywood home to continue discussing their potential collaboration.
Walters then visited Manson’s home. She tried to leave at around 2AM once his bandmates and assistant had left, however Manson said the lot that she had parked her car in would be closed until 7AM. The complaint then alleges that they conducted a photoshoot where at one point, Manson asked Walters to take off her shirt.
Once the shoot was done, the complaint then reads that Manson allegedly pinned Walters down to try to kiss her, but she turned away. He “then moved behind Walters and bit her ear while grabbing her hand and placing it in his underwear.” Walters moved away from him and fled soon after.
The lawsuit then alleges that although she left that night feeling “confusion and fear,” she was also excited “about their creative connection and similar artistic interests”, and “made the decision to… ignore the traumatising experience of being pinned to his bed”.
Walters and Manson conducted a few more photo and video shoots together. During her time shooting for Manson, more incidents allegedly occurred, including one where an unnamed actor hired by Manson “threw her against the wall and roughly shoved his tongue into her mouth.”
Soon after, Manson offered her a job as his assistant. He offered her double the salary she was earning in her job as an office coordinator at a production company and promised incentives such as art and travel.
“She knew it could be an incredible opportunity to become involved in the creative entertainment field, one that would not be likely to come around again,” the complaint reads. She then accepted the job.
While working for Manson, she allegedly faced more incidents of abuse from him, which would create an “atmosphere that was isolating” for her, the lawsuit claims.
On more than one occasion, Walters was forced to work for 48 hours straight. She reportedly lived in fear of his angry outbursts, where he would throw dishes at her, or push her against a wall. He would also barrage her with constant threats.
The complaint also alleges that he “commonly offered Walters up to his influential industry friends and associates.” In 2010 at the Spike TV Scream Awards in Los Angeles, Manson “pushed Walters onto the lap of an actor and bragged that he could ‘have her’.” The actor then kissed Walters and “[kept] her on his lap,” according to the lawsuit.
The next month, Walters said she was “offered up” by Manson to an “industry friend and director” who repeatedly groped her for the duration of the night.
Then, in mid-2011, the complaint reads that Manson began to try to smear Walters’ reputation publicly while he “physically and verbally threatened her”.
After a series of arguments during that period, he fired her.
Manson’s former fiancee Evan Rachel Wood was one of four women to publicly come forward with allegations of abuse against the musician back in February. She originally provided testimony of the horrific abuse she allegedly faced back in 2018, however she did not name him then.
Manson responded by calling the claims “horrible distortions of reality,” writing on Instagram that his “intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners.”
Manson’s lawyer Howard E. King. then responded to Bianco’s lawsuit claiming he sexually assaulted, abused and battered her, saying “to be clear, this suit was only filed after my client refused to be shaken down by Ms. Bianco and her lawyer and give in to their outrageous financial demands based on conduct that simply never occurred. We will vigorously contest these allegations in court and are confident that we will prevail.”
You can read Ashley Walters’ full complaint via The Cut here.
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If you need assistance, 1800 RESPECT – the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service — can be reached on 1800 737 732.
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