Steven Tyler Linked to Sexual Assault of a Minor Lawsuit
Steven Tyler has been linked to a lawsuit alleging sexual misdemeanors against a minor.
A number of details in the filing match events involving the Aerosmith singer known to have taken place in the '70s.
The State of California recently placed a temporary suspension on the statute of limitations in such cases, allowing plaintiff Julia Holcomb to lodge a suit listing 50 John Does. It's been widely assumed those include Tyler, who became Holcomb's legal guardian in 1974 and, in his own words, nearly married her even though she was 16 and he was 26.
In his 2011 memoir Does the Noise in My Head Bother You? he wrote that he "almost took a teen bride" and that "her parents fell in love with me, signed a paper over for me to have custody, so I wouldn't get arrested if I took her out of state. I took her on tour with me." He also said: "With my bad self being 26 and she barely old enough to drive and sexy as hell, I just fell madly in love with her. She was a cute skinny little tomboy dressed up as Little Bo Peep. She was my heart's desire, my partner in crimes of passion."
According to Rolling Stone, who obtained a copy of the suit, the paperwork alleges that, despite promising to look after her physical and educational needs, Tyler "did not meaningfully follow through on these promises and instead continued to travel with, assault and provide alcohol and drugs to Plaintiff."
Holcomb became pregnant at 17, but says she was persuaded to undergo an abortion under the threat of Tyler removing his protection from her. In his memoir account, he'd said the couple had been advised the child would suffer serious health issues from a house fire they'd endured, and that abortion was the best option. The suit, however, claims that a medical professional told Holcomb the unborn baby was not harmed by the fire.
Holcomb's claim asserted her relationship with Tyler subjected her to "involuntary infamy" and it hadn't been the "romantic, loving relationship" he made it out to be. In 2011, she wrote about her experiences, saying: "I became lost in a rock 'n' roll culture. … I didn't know it yet, but I would barely make it out alive. I could not believe he was even asking me to have an abortion at this stage. He spent over an hour pressing me to go ahead and have the abortion. He said that I was too young to have a baby and it would have brain damage because I had been in the fire and taken drugs."
Tyler has not commented on the suit.
Aerosmith Albums Ranked
Was Aerosmith’s ‘Night in the Ruts’ Doomed to Fail?