Axl Rose accused of 1989 sexual assault in new lawsuit

Actress and model Sheila Kennedy alleges that the Guns N' Roses frontman assaulted and raped her in his hotel room.

In a new lawsuit filed Wednesday, Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose has been accused of brutally assaulting a woman in a New York hotel room in 1989. He denies the incident described in court documents ever took place.

Although both Rose and plaintiff Sheila Kennedy reside in California, the alleged assault took place in New York City, so the lawsuit was filed in New York Supreme Court.

According to court documents obtained and published by Rolling Stone, Kennedy alleges that she met Rose at a New York nightclub in February 1989. The actress and model accompanied Rose back to his luxury hotel suite alongside MTV personality Riki Rachtman and another model.

Although Kennedy says she was attracted to Rose and interested in having sex with him, he became violent and angry over the course of the night — perhaps due to mixing alcohol and cocaine with prescription pills, which Kennedy spotted in his bathroom. After allegedly assaulting the other model, Rose turned his anger on Kennedy as well.

"Rose grabbed Kennedy by her robe and knocked her to the floor in the hallway outside Rachtman’s bedroom door," the legal complaint alleges. "While Kennedy was still on the ground, Rose grabbed her by the hair and dragged her across the suite back to his bedroom. This was very painful for Kennedy and caused her knees to bleed from scraping on the rug."

The lawsuit claims, "Rose made no attempt to ask for or check that Kennedy was consenting. He treated her like property used solely for his sexual pleasure. He did not use a condom. Kennedy did not consent and felt overpowered. She felt she had no escape or exit and was compelled to acquiesce. She believed Rose would physically attack her, or worse, if she said no or attempted to push him away. She understood that the safest thing to do was to lie in bed and wait for Rose to finish assaulting her."

Kennedy claims that the alleged assault has caused her to experience symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder over the years, particularly whenever she hears Guns N' Roses music, and has been diagnosed with anxiety and depression as a result. She avoids nightclubs or similar settings where she could encounter Rose or hear his music, which has affected her ability to make a living as a model. She is demanding a jury trial.

Kennedy is far from the first woman to accuse Rose of sexual assault, and Kennedy's lawsuit cites other examples.

In a 1994 cover story by PEOPLE, titled "Battered Beauties," Rose's ex-wife Erin Everly claimed that "throughout her four years with Rose, she suffered regular beatings that left her bruised, bloodied, and sometimes unconscious." The same story reported that Stephanie Seymour, another former lover of Rose, had sued him for alleged physical abuse.

Although the alleged incident took place in 1989, Kennedy filed her lawsuit under New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which allowed survivors to file sexual assault lawsuits even when the original statute of limitations had expired. The act is set to expire this week unless state lawmakers renew it.

Rose's attorney, Alan S. Gutman, denied the charges, and suggested the timing of the filing was suspicious.

“Simply put, this incident never happened. Notably, these fictional claims were filed the day before the New York State filing deadline expires," Gutman said in a statement obtained by EW. "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. Mr. Rose is confident this case will be resolved in his favor.”

This article has been updated with a statement from Rose's attorney.

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