LOS ANGELES (AP) — A woman who previously alleged that Steven Tyler had an illicit sexual relationship with her as a teenager is now suing the Aerosmith frontman for sexual assault, sexual assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Julia Misley’s lawsuit was filed Tuesday under a 2019 California law that gave adult victims of childhood sexual abuse a three-year window to file a lawsuit in decades-old abuse cases. Saturday is the deadline for filing such complaints.
Misley, 65, formerly known as Julia Holcomb, said in a statement that she wanted to take “another opportunity to take legal action against those who abused me in my youth.” The Associated Press does not name victims of sexual assault unless they publicly identify themselves.
Although the lawsuit does not name Tyler, Misley identified him by name in the filing, released through the law firm Jeff Anderson & Associates. She has also recounted her experiences with Tyler in previous interviews, and Tyler has discussed an affair with a teenage girl in two books, published in 2011 and 1997. The confessional section of her memoir Does The Noise In My Head Bother You? thanks to “Julia Halcomb,” which Misley said was a reference to her.
Tyler’s representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday.
The lawsuit alleges that Tyler “used his role, status and power as a well-known musician and rock star to gain access to, tame, manipulate, exploit, sexually assault” Misley over a three-year period. Some of the abuse occurred in Los Angeles County, according to the lawsuit. As a result, he suffered serious emotional harm and economic loss, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit alleges that Misley met Tyler in 1973 at one of his shows in Portland, Ore., and was later invited to Tyler’s hotel room, where she said he told her she was 16. Tyler would have been 25 or 26 at the time. He is said to have committed “various acts of criminal sexual conduct” against Misley.
He engaged in sexual acts with her after several performances and became her legal guardian in 1974 so she could come to him in performances, the suit claimed.
The suit alleged that Misley became pregnant in 1975 as a result of intercourse with Tyler and later forced her to have an abortion.
Tyler harmed Misley by posting memos detailing parts of their relationship without her knowledge or consent, the lawsuit states. In doing so, Misley subjected herself to public attention and scrutiny, which traumatized her and made it difficult for her to recover, the lawsuit states.
In Tyler’s 2011 memoir, he mentions meeting an unnamed 16-year-old “future girlfriend”. He wrote that he almost “got a teenage bride” and asked his parents to relinquish custody so he wouldn’t be arrested when she went on tour with him out of state.
“By including plaintiff’s name in the acknowledgments, he left readers and the public in no doubt as to plaintiff’s identity,” the suit says, adding that she was confronted with an image of her own face on the cover of a tabloid. in a grocery store after the book came out.
Tyler’s relationship with a teenage girl is also mentioned by several people in “Walk This Way”, a 1997 Aerosmith “autobiography” in oral history format. The teenager is given the pseudonym “Diana Hall” and at one point is described as pregnant. Tyler said he was thinking about marrying her, referred to abortions and called it “a tough situation all around.”
The lawsuit seeks monetary compensation of an unspecified amount.
