Jimmie Allen is facing some serious allegations after a lawsuit filed by his former manager accuses the country singer of sexual battery and assault, among other troubling accusations.
The lawsuit was filed in the federal court in Tennessee by a woman, identified only as Jane Doe, who used to be a member of Allen’s management team at Wide Open Music. The woman claims that, while she was managing Allen, he repeatedly raped her and subjected her to sexual assault for a period of 18 months.
According to Variety, during one trip the two took to film an appearance on The Ellen Show, Allen allegedly groped the woman’s breasts on the plane, pushed his erect penis against her body in public, and masturbated in front of her at the hotel where they were both staying.
She also claims that he raped her while on another trip while Allen was filming an appearance on American Idol. The complaint alleges that she was at dinner after the taping when Allen began touching her leg under the table and telling her that “this is going to happen.” She claims she drank two glasses of wine with dinner, and woke up naked in her hotel room the next morning in severe pain and bleeding vaginally, not remembering anything from the night before but finding Allen next to her in bed and insisting that she take Plan B.
The lawsuit claims that the woman felt like her job was contingent on continued sexual intercourse with Allen, who would continue to engage in sexual acts with the plaintiff, including in his dressing room while on tour with Carrie Underwood, at Luke Bryan’s Crash My Playa music festival, and even in his own home while his children were in the other room.
In a statement to Variety, Allen admits that the two had a sexual relationship, but claims that it was consensual:
“It is deeply troubling and hurtful that someone I counted as one of my closest friends, colleagues and confidants would make allegations that have no truth to them whatsoever.
I acknowledge that we had a sexual relationship — one that lasted for nearly two years. During that time, she never once accused me of any wrongdoing, and she spoke of our relationship and friendship as being something she wanted to continue indefinitely.
Only after things ended between us, did she hire a lawyer to reach out and ask for money, which leads me to question her motives. The simple fact is, her accusations are not only false, but also extremely damaging.
I’ve worked incredibly hard to build my career, and I intend to mount a vigorous defense to her claims and take all other legal action necessary to protect my reputation.”
The woman also names her former employer, Wide Open Music, as well as the company’s founder Ash Bowers, who she claims terminated her after she made the allegations against Allen.
Allen was the company’s biggest client, and was dropped by the firm after the allegations against him. The company claims that the woman was terminated because, after Allen was dropped, they no longer had a position for her:
“[Jane Doe] was the day-to-day manager for Mr. Allen. Once Wide Open Music no longer managed Mr. Allen, that role was gone and, furthermore, [the company] has transitioned out of artist management completely.”
The lawsuit also alleges that Allen videotaped many of their sexual encounters to use as blackmail, while insisting that the victim not use any electronics during their encounters.
The allegations also come less than a month after Allen announced that he was separating from his pregnant wife, Alexis Gale.
In her lawsuit, Jane Doe is suing Allen for sexual battery, assault, false imprisonment, sex trafficking and emotional distress, while Bowers and Wide Open Music are accused of gross negligence and participating in a venture engaged in sex trafficking, among other counts. She also claims that the company had fired Allen’s previous manager for defending an employee who had spoken out against Allen’s sexual advance, and were aware of his behavior.
I guess we’ll have to see what happens, but these are serious allegations that are pretty disturbing to read.
