Exclusive: Rick Springfield Talks Infamous ‘Butt Injury’ Lawsuit

Last week in the New York Supreme Court, rocker Rick Springfield was exonerated in a most unusual personal injury case filed by former fan Vicki Calcagno — who claimed she suffered “serious, disabling, and permanent injuries” after Springfield allegedly hit her in the head with his buttocks during a concert at the New York State Fair in 2004.

Now free and clear, Springfield speaks exclusively to Yahoo Music about the case he jokingly dubs “Assgate” or “assault and battery.”

Says Springfield, wryly: “This woman claimed that I hit her with my ass and knocked her to the ground during a show. She was claiming all these damages. I mean, I work out, but my ass isn’t that hard! So I figured that it was kind of bogus.”

While Springfield admits that some people advised him to settle the case (which was filed in 2007 and resulted in a mistrial in 2013), and “just throw some money at” Calcagno, he steadfastly refused. “[Settling] would not [be] good for me spiritually… And it would have set a bad precedent for musicians,” he explains. “Jesus, friggin’ the Sex Pistols used to spit on people, and they didn’t sue ‘em!”

At the end of it all, Springfield believes putting up a fight was worth it. “We’ve got jokes for the next couple years onstage,” he says, calling his derriere a “weapon of mass destruction,” before adding more seriously: “Everyone involved in the court [case] said, ‘We respect you for not settling.’”

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