As Stereogum has reported, Los Angeles dj and producer William Benjamin Bensussen, best known artistically as The Gaslamp Killer, has recently been accused of drugging and raping two women at a party in LA.
One of the accusers has come forward in a tweet and revealed how allegedly Bensussed drugged and had non consensual sex with her and her best friend after a party at The Standard Hotel. She added that she was only 20 years old at the time and that after waiting 4 years she is now ready to speak up and start the healing process. According to Stereogum, she decided to disclose the episode after the dj blocked her on twitter.
Bensussen, however, firmly denies all of the accusations he has been charged with by releasing a statement in which he says the her story is simply “not true’. He also pointed out that the matter needs to be address with the utmost care and attention, while still defending himself from allegations of sexual assault. His main point, however, is that the encounter he had with the two women was, in fact, consensual and that it was initiated by them, contrary to what he has been accused of.
Moreover, the artist recently filed a defamation lawsuit against both women, Stereogum says. He demanded as much as $5 million in damages and specified that there are actual witnesses who can testify his innocence.
One of the lawsuits , however, has been already thrown out on the grounds of RaeAn Medina’s anti-SLAPP motion. SLAPPs are “strategic lawsuit against public participation”, lawsuits with no foundation used to silence critics. Chelsea Tadros, one of the two accusers, has also filed a case citing anti-SLAPP but her motion was denied by the court.
Photo credit: Brett Padelford
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