Judge says woman accusing Jay-Z, Sean 'Diddy' Combs of raping her at age 13 can proceed anonymously
A federal judge says an Alabama woman accusing Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs of raping her when she was 13 years old can proceed anonymously for now with her lawsuit against the music moguls
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.An Alabama woman who says she was raped by Jay-Z and Sean “Diddy” Combs when she was 13 can proceed anonymously, for now, in her lawsuit against the rap moguls, a judge ruled Thursday.
In her written order, Judge Analisa Torres also chastised the lawyer representing Jay-Z for what she described as his combative motions and “inflammatory language” against the plaintiff's lawyer, calling them inappropriate.
The Manhattan jurist said the woman can proceed anonymously at this early stage of the litigation, but she may be required to reveal her identity at a later date, if the case proceeds. That would allow defense lawyers to collect facts necessary to prepare for trial. Torres also cited “substantial interest” from the public.
Combs remains jailed in New York awaiting a criminal trial on federal sex trafficking charges. He also faces a wave of sexual assault lawsuits, many of which were filed by the plaintiff's lawyer, Tony Buzbee, a Texas attorney who says his firm represents over 150 people, both men and women, who allege sexual abuse and exploitation by Combs.
The lawsuits allege many individuals were abused at parties in New York, California and Florida after receiving drug-laced drinks.
Combs’ lawyers have dismissed Buzbee’s lawsuits as “shameless publicity stunts, designed to extract payments from celebrities who fear having lies spread about them, just as lies have been spread about Mr. Combs.” Jay-Z has said in a statement that Buzbee is trying to blackmail him to settle the Alabama woman's allegations.
Buzbee said in an email that his firm does not comment on court rulings.
In her lawsuit, the woman who says she was raped at 13 identifies herself as “Jane Doe.” She said she was living in Rochester in 2000 when she made her way to New York City and befriended a limousine driver who drove her to an after-party for the MTV Music Awards, where she says she was eventually attacked by Jay-Z and Combs.
Alex Spiro, a lawyer for Jay-Z, asked the judge to dismiss the entertainer from the woman's lawsuit and he requested a hearing on the case for the day after he made his requests in writing on Dec. 18.
Citing an interview the plaintiff did on NBC-TV, Spiro wrote that the broadcast revealed “glaring inconsistencies and outright impossibilities” in the plaintiff's story. For one thing, the woman said she traveled for five hours from Rochester to watch the music awards show on a jumbotron outside the VMA even though permits and pictures show there was no jumbotron at the event.
Spiro also noted that the woman's father has said he does not recall driving from Rochester to pick his daughter up in New York City, as she says he did.
The woman has admitted inconsistencies in her story.
Torres wrote in her order Thursday that Spiro, who has been on the case less than three weeks, has submitted a “litany of letters and motions attempting to impugn the character of Plaintiff's lawyer, many of them expounding on the purported ‘urgency’ of this case.”
Referring to Jay-Z by his legal last name, the judge added: “Carter’s lawyer’s relentless filing of combative motions containing inflammatory language and ad hominem attacks is inappropriate, a waste of judicial resources, and a tactic unlikely to benefit his client. The Court will not fast-track the judicial process merely because counsel demands it.”
A message seeking comment from Spiro was left for him on Thursday.