Grammy-winning producer seeks to have rape complaint dismissed

Grammy-winning producer and songwriter The-Dream is seeking to have much of a sexual assault lawsuit against him dismissed.

The 47-year-old, born Terius Gesteelde-Diamant, was accused of rape and sexual assault in June by a former protégé, Chanaaz Mangroe, who performed under the name Channii Monroe.

In response, Mr Gesteelde-Diamant, who has written songs for Beyoncé, Rihanna, Justin Bieber and Mariah Carey, denied the allegations.

On Friday, his legal representatives filed a motion to dismiss the case, calling the charges “a classic example of shotgun pleading.”

The term “shotgun plea” is used to describe a complaint that states multiple allegations without providing the other party with fair notice of the claims.

In court documents seen by BBC News, lawyers have requested several amendments to Ms Mangroe’s complaint, insisting some paragraphs are “irrelevant” and “scandalous”.

They are seeking to have the rape claim dismissed, arguing that rape does not constitute a separate civil cause of action under California law.

They also argued that the sex trafficking complaint fails to allege required elements such as a “commercial sex act.”

His legal representatives also requested that his label Contra Paris, LLC be removed from the lawsuit because it is based in Delaware and therefore does not have personal jurisdiction in California.

“The complaint is a classic example of a ‘guilty plea’ and should be dismissed in its entirety for failing to attribute specific factual allegations to each defendant,” said Desirée F. Moore, an attorney representing Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant.

She added that Mangroe’s complaint “contains dozens of allegations that are completely unrelated to his allegations of sexual assault and sex trafficking and are, instead, designed solely to smear Diamant’s name and reputation.”

According to the complaint filed in JuneMs Mangroe claims Mr Gesteelde-Diamant repeatedly forced her to have sex, choked her and, on one occasion, filmed an intimate encounter and then threatened to show it to others.

According to the 60-page complaint, Ms. Mangroe is seeking damages for “lost wages” and “mental pain and anguish and severe emotional distress.”

Ms. Mangroe, originally from the Netherlands and who worked in the United States hoping to break through as a singer and songwriter, said in the lawsuit that she first met Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant in January 2015.

The 33-year-old claims he “subjected” her to “rough sex” that left her with bruises; forced her to drink “excessive amounts of alcohol”; choked her to the point she “nearly lost consciousness”; forced her into sexual acts in a movie theater; and raped her in a refurbished Sprinter van.

She also says he “told her he would make her the next Beyoncé and Rihanna.”

Days after that first meeting, Mangroe says Gesteelde-Diamant began pressuring her to have sex, telling her it was “part of the process,” the lawsuit says.

The 33-year-old says he locked her in a dark room and “only stopped having aggressive sex with her once she told him she loved him.”

Ms. Mangroe alleges in her complaint that the unwanted sexual relations continued, while Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant made promises to her, including suggesting he could arrange for her to be the opening act for Beyoncé’s upcoming tour and the Grammys.

Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant has won eight Grammy Awards and was nominated for the newly created Songwriter of the Year category at the 65th Grammy Awards in February 2023.

In a statement provided by a representative for Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant to The New York Times in June, he said the allegations were “false and defamatory.”

“I oppose any form of harassment and have always strived to help people achieve their career goals,” the statement said.

“As someone who is committed to making a positive impact on my fellow artists and the world at large, I am deeply offended and saddened by these accusations.”

BBC News has contacted Ms Mangroe for a response.