Country music star Garth Brooks is facing a lawsuit from a former hair-and-makeup artist, identified as “Jane Roe,” who accuses him of sexual assault and battery. The complaint, filed in a California state court and reported by CNN, details multiple instances of alleged sexual misconduct, including rape during a 2019 work trip to Los Angeles.
Roe, who began working for Brooks in 2017 after years of handling hair and makeup for his wife, Trisha Yearwood, claims that the incidents began before the alleged rape. According to her lawsuit, Roe was hired to accompany Brooks to Los Angeles for a Grammy tribute to Sam Moore. As TMZ reports, Roe claims she found it unusual that the two were alone on Brooks’ private jet.
Once in Los Angeles, Roe discovered that Brooks had rented only one hotel room for the two of them. Despite her request for a separate room, Brooks allegedly refused. The lawsuit details how Brooks appeared naked in the hotel room’s doorway, dragged Roe onto the bed, and raped her violently. Roe claims the assault left her feeling as though her body was “breaking in two.”
According to CNN, Roe alleges that after the assault, she was forced to continue working for Brooks at the Grammy event due to financial hardships. Roe’s complaint also details an earlier incident in 2019, when she claims Brooks forced her to touch him inappropriately after emerging naked from the shower at his home. Roe describes Brooks’ continued harassment, including sexual comments, groping, and fantasies involving his wife.
Garth Brooks’ Response to the Allegations
In response to these serious accusations, Brooks issued a statement to ABC News on Thursday night. He strongly denied the claims, framing the lawsuit as an extortion attempt. Brooks explained, “For the last two months, I have been hassled to no end with threats, lies, and tragic tales of what my future would be if I did not write a check for many millions of dollars. It has been like having a loaded gun waved in my face.”
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Brooks expressed his firm stance against paying what he referred to as “hush money,” saying, “Hush money, no matter how much or how little, is still hush money. In my mind, that means I am admitting to behavior I am incapable of — ugly acts no human should ever do to another.”
He further elaborated that he and his team had filed an anonymous suit nearly a month earlier, aiming to protect families on both sides of the issue. Brooks concluded his statement with a desire to move forward: “I want to play music tonight. I want to continue our good deeds going forward. It breaks my heart that these wonderful things are in question now. I trust the system, I do not fear the truth, and I am not the man they have painted me to be.”
This response casts the lawsuit in a different light, suggesting that Brooks believes the allegations are a false attempt to extort him.
With Brooks now speaking out, this ongoing legal battle continues to unfold, with both sides making strong claims. As the case progresses, the public must wait and see how the legal system responds to these serious accusations.
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