Guns N’ Roses frontman Axl Rose has been accused of violent sexual assault by a former model, according to a lawsuit filed in New York Supreme Court on Wednesday. The incident allegedly took place more than 30 years ago.
Sheila Kennedy, a former Penthouse model, alleges that she was “violently” sexually assaulted by the singer in 1989 after they met at a nightclub in New York City. She has sued Rose for battery, assault, gender-motivated violence and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Kennedy is seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages for physical injury, pain and suffering, severe emotional distress, mental anguish, humiliation, embarrassment, anxiety and economic harm. She says the alleged incident left her with anxiety and depression and harmed her career.
Pethouse Pet Sheila Kennedy attends Bob Guccione’s Cocktail Party for 1983 Penthouse Pet of the Year.
Ron Galella, Ltd. / Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
The lawsuit comes just one day before a temporary New York law, the Adult Survivors Act, expires. The law allows adult victims to sue over attacks that occurred even if the statute of limitations on their claims has expired.
According to the lawsuit, reported by Rolling Stone, Kennedy says Rose invited her back to his hotel room for a party after meeting at a nightclub. Kennedy alleges Rose offered party guests cocaine and alcohol at the party.
At one point, while leaving the bathroom, Rose was allegedly waiting for Kennedy outside. He “pushed Kennedy against a wall and kissed her,” which the former model “did not mind” and “was open to sleeping with him if things progressed.”
As the night went on, Kennedy claims Rose began encouraging some of the party guests to have group sex and says she became “uncomfortable” as she watched him have sex with another model. The complaint alleges she left the room and later heard him throwing glass and screaming insults at the model.
Later that night, Kennedy alleges Rose, now 61, “knocked her to the floor,” dragged her by the hair, tied her hands behind her back with a pair of pantyhose and proceeded to sexually assault her “while he was in a sexual, volatile rage.”
“Kennedy did not consent and felt overpowered,” the complaint reads, according to Rolling Stone. “She understood that the safest thing to do was to lie in bed and wait for Rose to finish assaulting her.”
“Rose made no attempt to ask for or check that Kennedy was consenting,” the lawsuit contines. “He treated her like property used solely for his sexual pleasure.”
The lawsuit said the attack left Kennedy with lifelong emotional, physical, psychological and financial damage and “symptoms akin to post-traumatic stress disorder whenever she hears Rose’s name or the music of Guns N’ Roses.”
Portrait of American model and actress Sheila Kennedy as she leans on the balcony at the Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris, France, August 1981. A photo from this session later appeared on the cover of the October 1987 issue of Penthouse magazine.
Bob Guccione / The OG Collection / Getty Images
Rose’s lawyer, Alan S. Gutman, denied the allegations, telling CNN in a statement, “Simply put, this incident never happened.”
“Notably, these fictional claims were filed the day before the New York State filing deadline expires. Though he doesn’t deny the possibility of a fan photo taken in passing, Mr. Rose has no recollection of ever meeting or speaking to the Plaintiff, and has never heard about these fictional allegations prior to today,” the statement continued. “Mr. Rose is confident this case will be resolved in his favor.”
Kennedy has made the allegations about Rose in the past, including in her 2016 memoir, No One’s Pet, and in a 2021 documentary, Look Away, about women sexually abused in the music industry.
Axl Rose performs at the Guns ‘N’ Roses ‘Not In This Lifetime’ Tour at QSAC Stadium Brisbane on Feb. 7, 2017 in Brisbane, Australia.
Marc Grimwade / WireImage
According to People, Rose has faced other accusations of sexual abuse in the past, including an arrest for alleged statutory rape (the charges were later dropped), and in 1994 two of his former partners, Erin Everly and Stephanie Seymour, told the magazine that Rose had abused them but both settled lawsuits against the singer out of court.
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If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse or is involved in an abusive situation, please visit the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime for help. They are also reachable toll-free at 1-877-232-2610.
— With files from The Associated Press
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