Garth Brooks accused of sexual assault and battery in lawsuit filed by hair and makeup artist who worked for him - Boston News, Weather, Sports

(CNN) — Country music star Garth Brooks has been accused of sexual assault and battery in a lawsuit filed by a “Jane Roe” who claims she worked as a hair and makeup artist for the award-winning singer.

The complaint, filed Thursday in California state court and obtained by CNN, says the alleged incidents occurred in 2019. She claims she was raped once by Brooks during a work trip.

In a statement to CNN later Thursday, Brooks said: “Over the past two months, I have been harassed endlessly with threats, lies and tragic stories about what my future would be like if I didn’t make a check for several million. of dollars. »

“Hid money, no matter how small or small, is still hush money. In my mind, that means I am admitting to behavior that I am incapable of – horrible acts that no human should ever do to another,” he added. “We filed a complaint against this person almost a month ago to denounce extortion and defamation. We filed it anonymously for the sake of the families on both sides.

Prior to Roe’s filing and as first reported by CNN, an anonymous celebrity plaintiff — now revealed to be Brooks — attempted to stop Roe from publicly repeating his allegations and fiercely denied the claims, according to a complaint previous one which he had filed as “John”. Doe.”

Roe began handling hair and makeup services for Brooks in 2017, according to her lawsuit, which says she was first hired to do hair and makeup for his wife, Trisha Yearwood, in 1999.

CNN has reached out to Yearwood’s representatives, as well as the accuser’s lawyers, for comment.

In addition to sexual assault and battery, the suit accuses Brooks of repeatedly exposing his genitals and buttocks; talking about sex and sharing sexual fantasies with Roe; changing clothes regularly in front of Roe; and sending sexually explicit text messages.

In her filing, Roe claims that in an alleged incident in 2019, while she was at Brooks’ home for work, he came out of the shower naked, “grabbed her hands and forced them” on his genitals, while speaking to him with sexual remarks. explicit and vulgar language.

In another alleged incident that occurred in May 2019, the suit alleges that Brooks violated Roe in a hotel room during a work trip to Los Angeles, where Brooks was taping a Grammy Awards tribute performance.

According to the suit, Brooks and Roe traveled to Los Angeles on Brooks’ private jet.

“Usually there were others on board Brooks’ private jet, but this time Ms. Roe and Brooks were the only two passengers,” the complaint states. “Once in Los Angeles at the hotel, Ms. Roe could not believe that Brooks had booked a one-bedroom hotel suite and that she did not have a separate bedroom.”

Once they arrived at the hotel suite, Roe says the country singer “appeared in the doorway of the room, completely naked.” Roe’s complaint says she felt “stuck in the room alone with Brooks.”

After the alleged rape, Roe claims Brooks continued to tell her his sexual fantasies more frequently and physically groped her. The complaint says Brooks “made repeated remarks” about “having a threesome” with his wife.

In his complaint as plaintiff John Doe, Brooks claims defendant Roe’s attorney sent him ‘confidential’ request letter alleging sexual misconduct after denying Roe’s request for “employment and medical benefits.”

“Defendant’s allegations are not true,” Brooks’ previous lawsuit states. “The Defendant is, however, well aware of the substantial and irreparable harm that such false allegations would cause to the Plaintiff’s well-deserved reputation as a decent and caring person, as well as the inevitable harm to his family and the irreparable harm to his career and to her livelihood this would happen if she followed through on her threat to “publicly file” her fabricated lawsuit.

Roe’s lawyers told CNN that Brooks’ “efforts to silence our client by filing a preemptive lawsuit in Mississippi were nothing more than an act of desperation and attempted intimidation.”

“We are confident that Brooks will be held accountable for his actions,” attorneys Douglas H. Wigdor, Jeanne M. Christensen and Hayley Baker said in a statement to CNN. “We applaud our client’s courage in moving forward with her complaint against Garth Brooks. The complaint filed today demonstrates that sexual predators exist not only in corporate America, in Hollywood and in the rap and rock and roll industries, but also in the world of country music.