A former model and actress has filed a lawsuit against Axl Rose, claiming the Guns N’ Roses rocker sexually assaulted her at a New York hotel during a meeting in 1989.
Sheila Kennedy sued Rose, 61, in New York on Wednesday for alleged sexual assault and battery, claiming the singer “targeted” her by using his fame and celebrity status to “manipulate, control and violently sexually assault” her.
Kennedy, who previously spoke publicly about her encounter with Rose in her 2016 memoir, says in the complaint, obtained by PEOPLE, that she was “unaware” of who Rose was when she met him at the nightclub after being invited there by a friend.
Rose’s lawyer denies the claims. “Simply put, this incident never happened. In fact, these fictitious lawsuits were filed the day before the New York state filing deadline,” attorney Alan S. Gutman says in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. “While not denying the possibility of a fan photo taken in passing, Mr. Rose does not recall ever meeting or speaking with the prosecutor, and had never heard of these trumped-up allegations before today. Mr. Rose is confident this case will be resolved in his benefit.”
According to the complaint, Kennedy left the club with Rose and his entourage and headed to his hotel suite, where he allegedly “pushed Kennedy against the wall and kissed her,” although she says she didn’t mind because she was willing to sleep with him.
As the night wore on, Kennedy, now 61, claims Rose began encouraging group sex and she became “uncomfortable” as she watched him have sex with another model. The lawsuit alleges that Kennedy left Rose’s bedroom and was later heard throwing glass and screaming at the model.
Sheila Kennedy 2013
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She claims he then entered the room where she was sitting and knocked her to the floor, then “grabbed her by the hair and dragged her” back into his bedroom in a “very painful” encounter that left her with bloody knees.
Once in Rose’s bedroom, Kennedy claims he threw her to the floor twice, then tied her hands behind her back with pantyhose before “forcibly entering Kennedy’s anus with his penis” without seeking consent.
“He treated her as property that he used exclusively for his sexual pleasure,” the lawsuit claims. “Kennedy did not agree and felt superior. She felt that there was no way out and was forced to agree. She believed that if she said no or tried to push him away, Rose would physically attack her, or worse. She figured it was safest to lie in bed and wait for Rose to finish her attack.”
Kennedy, ex Penthouse the model, who was the magazine’s “Favorite of the Year” in 1983, says in the complaint that the alleged attack left “a lifelong emotional, physical, psychological and financial impact” on her life and that she experienced symptoms similar to post-traumatic stress disorder when hearing Rose’s name or Guns music N’ Roses. He also claims that the attack directly led to her being diagnosed with anxiety and depression, and that it negatively affected her career, as she avoided nightclubs and social scenarios where he or his music might be involved.
The lawsuit also cites other instances of Rose’s alleged sexual abuse, including his arrest for alleged statutory rape (criminal charges were later dropped) and a 1994 PEOPLE cover story that featured interviews with his former partners Erin Everly and Stephanie Seymour. Both women claimed Rose abused them and both filed lawsuits against him, though each case was settled out of court.
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Axl Rose (center) with Guns N’ Roses in 1988.
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Kennedy’s charges were filed just one day before the expiration of the NY Adult Survivors Act, which gave adult survivors of sexual assault a year to sue their abusers regardless of when the abuse occurred.
She previously wrote about her encounter with Rose in her 2016 memoir Nobody’s petin which she claimed that she was “crying and bleeding” because the musician allegedly assaulted her.
“Strangely enough, this suited me. I wanted to be with him the first time I saw him, and now I was getting him. When he finished, he drove me away and we fucked each other,” she writes. “I remember going down on him… And when we were exhausted, he got up next to me, took me with a spoon and started playing with my hair.”
Kennedy also wrote in her book that while there were “a lot of people who want to see him burn in hell,” she felt differently.
“I don’t feel that way about him, but I feel in a way that he got everything he deserved,” she wrote.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.
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