A New York federal court ruled that an Alabama woman who claims she was raped when she was 13 years old by Jay-Z, Sean Diddy Combs, and other rap moguls can continue her lawsuit anonymously for the time being.
U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres wrote that the woman could proceed anonymously for now, but may have to reveal her identity if the case continues. This would allow the defense lawyers to gather facts needed to prepare for the trial. Torres cited the “substantial” interest from the public.
The Manhattan jurist also chastised Alex Spiro — the lawyer representing Jay-Z, whose legal name is Shawn Carter — for what she described as his “relentless filing of combative motions containing inflammatory language and ad hominem attacks” against the plaintiff’s lawyer, calling them “inappropriate, a waste of judicial resources, and a tactic unlikely to benefit his client.”
Torres wrote Thursday in her order that Spiro has submitted “a litany of letters, motions, and other documents attempting to impugn Plaintiff’s attorney’s character, with many of these elaborating on the purported “urgency” of this case. “
Tony Buzbee said that in response to the court’s ruling, “He typically does not comment on court decisions,” but that the “coordinated and desperate attempts to attack me as the counsel for alleged victims are failing.”
Combs is still in jail in New York, waiting for a criminal trial to be held on federal charges of sex trafficking. Combs also faces a wave of sexual assault lawsuits. Many of these were filed by Buzbee. A Texas attorney, Buzbee claims that his firm represents more than 150 men and women who have accused Combs of sexual abuse and exploitation.
According to the lawsuits, many people were abused after drinking drinks laced with drugs at parties in New York City, California, and Florida.
Combs’ attorneys have dismissed Buzbee’s lawsuits as “shameless public relations stunts” designed to extract money from celebrities who are afraid of having false information spread about them. Just as it has been done about Mr. Combs. Jay-Z said in a press release that Buzbee was trying to blackmail the Alabama woman to settle her allegations.
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.
Spiro requested that the judge dismiss the entertainer’s name from the woman’s lawsuit. He also requested an oral hearing for the next day, after making his request in writing to the court on December 18.
Citing a plaintiff’s interview with NBC News in his article, Spiro said that the broadcast showed “glaring contradictions and outright impossibilities” in her story. The woman claimed to have traveled five hours from Rochester in order to watch the VMAs on a jumbotron, even though pictures and permits show there wasn’t a jumbotron present 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 acknowledged inconsistencies in her story in the interview.
