A woman who claims she was groomed and sexually assaulted by Bob Dylan when she was a minor has filed suit against the music icon.
The lawsuit, filed Friday in Manhattan Supreme Court, identifies the now 68-year-old alleged victim only as J.C.
The woman claims that the alleged abuse happened in 1965 when she was 12 years old, saying Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, took advantage of her at his Chelsea Hotel apartment 56 years ago. J.C. claims Dylan used his fame to gain her trust and began to groom her “as part of his plan to sexually molest and abuse,” according to the legal documents.
“Bob Dylan (‘Dylan’), over a six-week period between April and May of 1965 befriended and established an emotional connection with the plaintiff, J.C., to lower her inhibitions with the object of sexually abusing her, which he did, coupled with the provision of drugs, alcohol and, threats of physical violence, leaving her emotionally scarred and psychologically damaged to this day,” the suit claims.
J.C. claims she was sexually abused several times by the singer, which has led her to allegedly grapple with “permanent” anxiety, depression and humiliation over the years. She claims to have sought medical treatment because the mental toll had “incapacitated plaintiff from attending her regular activities.”
Speaking to The New York Post, J.C.’s attorney, Daniel W. Isaacs, said of the lawsuit, “She provided a lot of detailed information regarding the time in question that leaves no doubt that she was with him in the apartment during the time in question.”
J.C. is requesting a jury trial and seeks unspecified damages.
A representative for Dylan, 80, denies the account and told The New York Post, “This 56-year-old claim is untrue and will be vigorously defended.”
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