A judge dismissed the lawsuit against the Aerosmith frontman, who allegedly caused a woman named Jeanne Bellino to suffer from 'physical, psychological and emotional injuries.'
- Feb 23, 2024
AceShowbiz - A sexual assault lawsuit against Steven Tyler has been dismissed because the alleged incident didn't present a serious risk of harm. The Aerosmith frontman was sued by Jeanne Bellino in November after she claimed she suffered "physical, psychological and emotional injuries" when she was allegedly sexually assaulted by the "Crazy" singer in 1975, when she was 17 and he was in his late 20s, but on Wednesday, February 21, a judge dismissed the case.
The lawsuit was brought as part of New York City's Victim of Gender-Motivated Violence Protection act, a law which extended the statute of limitations for certain alleged sexual misdeeds to be heard in court, but the judge declared the alleged act needed to meet certain criteria, including "presenting a serious risk of physical injury," and he felt the claim Tyler had kissed, groped and "pretended to have sex" the accuser didn't fit the bill, even though it may be distressing, TMZ reports.
The ruling could set a precedent on other cases filed in New York City under the same provision. Jeanne has until 13 March to try and amend her complaint.
According to Rolling Stone, in her original lawsuit, Jeanne claimed she met Tyler, now 75, when a friend arranged for them to meet his band at the Warwick Hotel following a fashion show she was working in Manhattan. When the pair met the singer and several unnamed members of her entourage, they walked down sixth avenue together.
Jeanne claimed the "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" hitmaker grew frustrated when she asked about a song lyric and he forced her into a phone booth.
The suit alleged, "While holding her captive, Tyler stuck his tongue down her throat, and put his hands upon her body, her breasts, her buttocks, and her genitals, moving and removing clothing and pinning her against the wall of the phone booth. As Tyler was mauling and groping Plaintiff, he was humping her pretending to have sex with Plaintiff. Others stood by outside the phone booth laughing and as passersby watched and witnessed, nobody in the entourage intervened... Tyler's penis was erect and it was evident to her as he rubbed it against her that he was not wearing underwear and wearing thin pants."
Eventually, the model freed herself after raising her knee and pulling the singer's hair and she ran out of the phone booth in "shock and fear." Although she was confused and in shock, Jeanne - who alleged it was her first sexual experience, stayed with the group because she was relying on her friend for transportation, and they returned to the hotel, only for Tyler to allegedly forcibly kiss her and grind against her near the bar area.
The suit claimed Jeanne has "suffered and will continue to suffer, great pain of mind and body, severe and permanent emotional distress, physical manifestations of emotional distress, embarrassment, humiliation, physical, personal and psychological injuries" as a result of the alleged incident, which led to her being hospitalised and still in need of medication nearly five decades later.
