What was Axl Rose accused of? Guns N' Roses frontman reaches private settlement over s*xual assault lawsuit
Rolling Stone has reported that Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose has reached a private settlement with the former model who had accused him of s*xual assault last year. In November 2023, Sheila Kennedy filed a lawsuit that claimed that Rose had attacked and r*ped her in a Manhattan hotel back in February 1989.
Trigger warning: This article mentions s*xual assault. Readers' discretion is advised.
The singer, however, has maintained his innocence and denied all the accusations. In the article by Rolling Stone, published on December 3, Rose said:
"As I have from the beginning, I deny the allegations. There was no assault."
While it is known that the two parties have reached a settlement, the elements and the date of the same have not been revealed. The outlet further reported that both parties had filled out paperwork in New York stating that they wouldn't continue the proceedings and even agreed to take care of their own legal expenses.
Sheila Kennedy, who also was the Penthouse magazine’s 1983 "Pet of the Year," claimed that she was at Axl Rose's luxury suite in a hotel on Central Park West. According to Kennedy, who was then 26, the singer hosted an after-party there.
In the suit, Kennedy claimed that Rose had "pushed her against the wall and kissed her." The lawsuit further stated that Kennedy was open to having a s*xual relationship with Axl Rose as she found him attractive. However, the situation became problematic when Rose allegedly got "aggressive."
Axl Rose has previously faced s*xual and domestic abuse allegations by his former partners
This wasn't the first time that the Guns N' Roses singer faced such grave allegations surrounding s*xual assault. He was previously accused of the same by his former partners Erin Everly and Stephanie Seymour, as per reports by PEOPLE in 1994.
Everly, who was married to Rose from 1990 to 1991, even sued the singer. The suit was reportedly later settled outside court. By mid-1991, Stephanie and Axl Rose got involved in a relationship. The former couple even were engaged, but broke up shortly after. In August 1993, Stephanie Seymour was sued by Axl for allegedly assaulting and stealing from him.
This was when Seymour reportedly filed a counter-suit claiming that Axl Rose was abusive. The suits were eventually settled. The references to the previous accusations against Rose were included in the lawsuit that Sheila Kennedy filed against him. The suit claimed:
"Rose made no attempt to ask for or check that Kennedy was consenting. He treated her like property used solely for his s*xual pleasure. He did not use a condom."
It was further claimed that the complainant had reportedly suffered from serious mental impact including PTSD-like symptoms and depression, post the alleged incident with Rose. After the latest settlement with Kennedy, Axl's lawyer E. Danya Perry said,
"Mr. Rose has suffered greatly from this lawsuit, and I am pleased that he will now be able to move on with his life."
Rolling Stone added that they had tried to reach out to Kennedy and her lawyer, however, no response had been received from their end as of now.
