Bob Dylan sued for allegedly grooming, sexually abusing 12-year-old girl in 1965

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Bob Dylan sued for allegedly grooming, sexually abusing 12-year-old girl in 1965

Bob Dylan is being accused of sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl in 1965, according to a new lawsuit filed Friday.

The "Like a Rolling Stone" singer/songwriter, 80, whose real name is Robert Zimmerman, allegedly groomed, sexually abused and threatened physical violence against the plaintiff, identified only as "J.C." in the court documents. The alleged abuse occurred multiple times over a six-week period between April and May 1965, with some incidents occurring in his Chelsea Hotel apartment in New York.

The legal documents obtained by USA TODAY also claim that Dylan "exploited his status as a musician" to illegally provide drugs and alcohol to the underage girl.

A spokesperson for Dylan told USA TODAY in a statement on Monday that "the 56-year-old claim is untrue and will be vigorously defended."

USA TODAY has reached out to Dylan's attorney for comment.

"Dylan's predatory, sexual and unlawful acts against Plaintiff amounted to a series of harmful and offensive contacts to Plaintiff's person, all of which were done intentionally by him to her without her consent," the lawsuit, filed by lawyer Daniel W. Isaacs, reads.

As a result of the alleged abuse, the plaintiff has sustained physical and psychological injuries, including "severe emotional and psychological distress, humiliation, fright, disassociation, anger, depression, anxiety, personal turmoil and loss of faith, a severe shock to her nervous system, physical pain and mental anguish, and emotional and psychological damage."

The New York Child Victims Act, passed in 2019, opened up a window for people who claim they were sexually abused as children to file lawsuits against their alleged abuser, even though their allegations would otherwise be too old to prosecute due to the statute of limitations. The “look-back” window in the law closed on Saturday, when the law expired. This lawsuit was filed the day prior.

Aside from Dylan, another famous person targeted by a “look-back” lawsuit is Prince Andrew, who was sued last week in federal court in Manhattan by a woman who invoked the Child Victims Act in her complaint that she was trafficked to the Duke of York by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in 2001 in New York when she was 17.

Dylan, a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee who last year released his 39th studio album, "Rough and Rowdy Ways," has received numerous awards, including the Nobel Prize in Literature, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Pulitzer Prize and multiple Grammy Awards.

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Contributing: Maria Puente and Melissa Ruggieri

billfitz24 on August 16th, 2021 at 22:33 UTC »

I wonder if Bob Dylan can even remember 1965?

YoBuckStopsHere on August 16th, 2021 at 21:11 UTC »

All the rock bands of the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s are sweating bullets

AudibleNod on August 16th, 2021 at 20:58 UTC »

The New York Child Victims Act, passed in 2019, opened up a window for people who claim they were sexually abused as children to file lawsuits against their alleged abuser, even though their allegations would otherwise be too old to prosecute due to the statute of limitations. The “look-back” window in the law closed on Saturday, when the law expired. This lawsuit was filed the day prior.

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Interesting. I wonder if the timing was related to the expiration of the law or there was some other, unrelated reason.