A former Penthouse magazine model is suing Guns N’ Roses singer Axl Rose, accusing him of sexually assaulting her in a New York City hotel in 1989.
Sheila Kennedy, 61, filed the lawsuit in the State Supreme Court in Manhattan under New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which lets victims sue over attacks that occurred decades ago – the law expires after Thanksgiving on Thursday.
More than 2,500 lawsuits have been filed so far under the law, which have targeted individuals, employers or institutions such as hospitals, accusing them of not doing enough to stop abuse, but the vast majority have been filed against the state, New York City and local counties involving allegations of abuse at state prisons and local jails.
Attorney Alan S Gutman said in a statement on behalf of Rose: “Simply put, this incident never happened. Notably, these fictional claims were filed the day before the New York State filing deadline expires.
“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 favour.”
It is the latest in a string of lawsuits filed under New York’s expiring Adult Survivors Act.
Image: Bill Cosby
Several lawsuits filed before law expires
On Tuesday a woman accused Bill Cosby of drugging and sexually abusing her after offering to mentor her in her acting career – joining more than 60 women who have accused him of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment.
He has denied all allegations involving sex crimes.
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A spokesperson for Cosby, 86, declined to comment but suggested look-back windows in place in New York and elsewhere should be closed because they were being abused to go after wealthy celebrities, asking: “When is it going to stop?”
Also on Tuesday American writer and filmmaker AM Lukas accused White Lines actor Nuno Lopes of drugging and raping her in 2006.
Lopes denied any wrongdoing and said he would not be afraid to take legal action against anyone who tried to defame him.
Image: Terry Richardson. Pic: AP
And photographer Terry Richardson, who was effectively blacklisted by the fashion world in 2017 after multiple rape and sexual assault allegations, had a new lawsuit filed against him on Tuesday by Spanish model Minerva Portillo.
Image: Record producer Jimmy Iovine
Jamie Foxx accused of sexual assault
Jamie Foxx was also sued under the act on Wednesday, by a woman who accused the Hollywood star of sexual assault while at a New York rooftop lounge in 2015. A spokesperson for Foxx has been approached for comment.
Meanwhile music industry veteran Jimmy Iovine was sued by a woman who claims she was sexually abused, forcibly touched and subject to sexual harassment and retaliation in August 2017.
A spokesperson for Iovine said they were “quite shocked and baffled” by the alleged claim, adding: “This inquiry is the first we’ve heard of this matter. No one has ever made a claim like this against Jimmy Iovine, nor have we been contacted or made aware of any complaint by anyone, including this unknown plaintiff prior to now.”
Image: Actor Cuba Gooding Jr in court after he pleaded guilty
Oscar-winning actor sued by two women
Also on Wednesday Oscar-winning actor Cuba Gooding Jr was sued by two women whose sexual assault accusations against the star formed the basis of a criminal prosecution that ended with him pleading guilty in April 2022 but serving no jail time.
Lawyers who have represented Gooding in civil and criminal litigation over his alleged sexual misconduct did not respond to requests for comment.
R Kelly was hospitalised after prison officials gave him an overdose of medication, his lawyers have claimed – as part of what they say is an ongoing assassination plot.
Kelly, whose full name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, is currently serving time at the Federal Correctional Institute in Butner, North Carolina, after being convicted of sex trafficking and racketeering in 2021.
A year later, he was found guilty on three charges of producing child sexual abuse images and three charges of enticement of minors for sex.
The 58-year-old was taken to hospital on Friday after prison staff “administered an overdose of his medication”, according to a court document filed by his lawyer.
The document, filed on Tuesday, reads: “Mr. Kelly’s life is in danger, and that danger is coming from Bureau of Prisons officials and their actions.
“Mr. Kelly needs this Court’s intervention. His life actually depends on it.”
Nicole Blank Becker, one of Kelly’s lawyers, said he is in solitary confinement and that she spoke with him on Monday.
“What is happening right now with him is insane,” she said. “I hope that this really results in someone, somewhere, somehow getting ahold of him today and getting him back in the hospital.”
A spokesperson for the Bureau of Prisons said in a statement that “for privacy, safety, and security reasons, we do not discuss the conditions of confinement for any incarcerated individual, including medical and health-related issues”.
“Additionally, the Bureau of Prisons does not comment on pending litigation or matters that are the subject of legal proceedings,” they added.
The allegation is the latest in a line of similar claims from the singer’s legal team, who last week filed a motion accusing the Bureau of Prisons of instructing another inmate to kill Kelly.
A motion filed by Kelly’s legal team claimed Mikeal Glenn Stine, who is alleged to be a member of the Aryan Brotherhood gang and has a terminal cancer diagnosis, was given a chance to “to live out the last of those months as a free man” in exchange for killing the singer.
The next day, his legal team filed additional material saying he had been moved to solitary confinement and denied access to his lawyer.
Prosecutors rejected the claims as “repugnant”.
Their written response said: “Kelly has never taken responsibility for his years of sexually abusing children, and he probably never will.
“Undeterred, Kelly now asks this Court to release him from incarceration indefinitely under the guise of a fanciful conspiracy.”
The UK-US trade deal has been signed and is “done”, US President Donald Trump has said as he met Sir Keir Starmer at the G7 summit.
The US president told reporters: “We signed it, and it’s done. It’s a fair deal for both. It’ll produce a lot of jobs, a lot of income.”
As Mr Trump and his British counterpart exited a mountain lodge in the Canadian Rockies where the summit is being held, the US president held up a physical copy of the trade agreement to show reporters.
Several leaves of paper fell from the binding, and Mr Starmer quickly bent down to pick them up, saying: “A very important document.”
Image: President Donald Trump drops papers as he meets with Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Kananaskis, Canada. Pic: AP
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Sir Keir Starmer hastily collects the signed executive order documents from the ground and hands them back to the US president.
Sir Keirsaid the document “implements” the deal to cut tariffs on cars and aerospace, adding: “So this is a very good day for both of our countries – a real sign of strength.”
Mr Trump added that the UK was “very well protected” against any future tariffs, saying: “You know why? Because I like them”.
However, he did not say whether levies on British steel exports to the US would be set to 0%, saying “we’re gonna let you have that information in a little while”.
Image: Sir Keir Starmer picks up paper from the UK-US trade deal after Donald Trump dropped it at the G7 summit. Pic: Reuters
What exactly does trade deal being ‘done’ mean?
The government says the US “has committed” to removing tariffs (taxes on imported goods) on UK aerospace goods, such as engines and aircraft parts, which currently stand at 10%.
That is “expected to come into force by the end of the month”.
Tariffs on car imports will drop from 27.5% to 10%, the government says, which “saves car manufacturers hundreds of millions a year, and protects tens of thousands of jobs”.
The White House says there will be a quota of 100,000 cars eligible for import at that level each year.
But on steel, the story is a little more complicated.
The UK is the only country exempted from the global 50% tariff rate on steel – which means the UK rate remains at the original level of 25%.
That tariff was expected to be lifted entirely, but the government now says it will “continue to go further and make progress towards 0% tariffs on core steel products as agreed”.
The White House says the US will “promptly construct a quota at most-favoured-nation rates for steel and aluminium articles”.
Other key parts of the deal include import and export quotas for beef – and the government is keen to emphasise that “any US imports will need to meet UK food safety standards”.
There is no change to tariffs on pharmaceuticals for the moment, and the government says “work will continue to protect industry from any further tariffs imposed”.
The White House says they “committed to negotiate significantly preferential treatment outcomes”.
Mr Trump also praised Sir Keir as a “great” prime minister, adding: “We’ve been talking about this deal for six years, and he’s done what they haven’t been able to do.”
He added: “We’re very longtime partners and allies and friends and we’ve become friends in a short period of time.
“He’s slightly more liberal than me to put it mildly… but we get along.”
Sir Keir added that “we make it work”.
The US president appeared to mistakenly refer to a “trade agreement with the European Union” at one point as he stood alongside the British prime minister.
In a joint televised phone call in May, Sir Keir and Mr Trump announced the UK and US had agreed on a trade deal – but added the details were being finalised.
Ahead of the G7 summit, the prime minister said he would meet Mr Trump for “one-on-one” talks, and added the agreement “really matters for the vital sectors that are safeguarded under our deal, and we’ve got to implement that”.
A Los Angeles doctor has agreed to plead guilty to giving Friends actor Matthew Perry ketamine in the lead up to his death from a fatal overdose, prosecutors have said.
Dr Salvador Plasencia, who will admit to four counts of distribution of ketamine, faces up to a maximum of 40 years in prison.
The actor had been using the drug through his regular doctor in a legal treatment for depression, but had begun seeking more ketamine than his doctor would give him.
Image: Salvador Plasencia. Pic: Malibu Canyon Urgent Care
Plasencia is accused of supplying the bulk of Perry’s ketamine in his final weeks. He and three other defendants, including another doctor, agreed to plead guilty in exchange for their cooperation.
Jasmine Sangha, who prosecutors allege was a major ketamine dealer, is alleged to have provided the dose that killed the actor and is the only defendant who has pleaded not guilty to the prosecution’s case.
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About a month before the actor’s death, Perry found Plasencia, a doctor who allegedly asked another doctor, Mark Chavez, to obtain the drug for him, according to court filings in the Chavez case.
“I wonder how much this moron will pay,” Plasencia texted Chavez, according to court filings from prosecutors.
Image: Dr Mark Chavez has pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute ketamine to Perry. File pic: AP
The pair who practised in California met up the same day and exchanged at least four vials of ketamine, the filings said.
After selling the drugs to Perry for $4,500 (£3,314), Plasencia allegedly asked Chavez if he could keep supplying them so they could become Perry’s “go-to” prosecutors said.
Chavez has pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute ketamine to Perry.
Perry struggled with addiction for years, dating back to his time on Friends, when he became one of the biggest stars of his generation as Chandler Bing.
He starred alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer for 10 seasons from 1994 to 2004.