A woman has filed a sexual abuse lawsuit against Bob Dylan, alleging that the singer-songwriter sexually abused her in 1965, when she was 12 years old.
The suit alleges that Dylan gave her drugs and alcohol, and established an emotional connection that allowed him to sexually abuse her for a period of several weeks.
The woman is identified only as J.C. in the complaint, which doesn’t go into significant detail. The complaint offers almost as much background on Dylan’s songwriting accolades as it does on the alleged sexual abuse. In a statement, a Dylan spokesman said, “The 56-year-old claim is untrue and will be vigorously defended.”
The woman filed suit under New York’s Child Victims Act, the 2019 law that opened a two-year period during which the ordinary statute of limitations was suspended for claims of child sexual abuse. The deadline to file such suit fell on Saturday, and the suit against Dylan was filed on Friday night.
Several other high-profile complaints were filed over the last week, including one against comedian Horatio Sanz and another that involved an allegation against Nicki Minaj and her husband.
The Dylan suit claims that the victim was abused multiple times over a six-week period from April to May 1965. It alleges that Dylan used threats of physical violence, “leaving her emotionally scarred and psychologically damaged to this day.” Some of the abuse is alleged to have occurred at the Hotel Chelsea in New York.
The suit alleges claims of assault, battery, false imprisonment and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The claim was filed by attorneys Daniel Isaacs and Peter Gleason.