A California woman, Julia Holcomb Misley, has filed a lawsuit against Aerosmith’s lead singer, Steven Tyler, alleging s**ual battery, s**ual assault, and intentional infliction of distress during a three-year period in the 1970s.
Misley, who was 16 at the time, claims to have had a s**ual relationship with Tyler and is using a state law that temporarily extends the statute of limitations for adults to take legal action on childhood s**ual abuse.
In a statement, Misley expressed her intention to stand up against abuse in the music industry and make it safer by exposing the predators and the culture of permissiveness that enables them.
The lawsuit refers to Tyler as “Doe 1,” a well-known musician and rock star.
However, Misley’s lawyers explicitly named Tyler in their press release, although his representatives have yet to respond to the allegations.
According to the lawsuit, Tyler met Misley after a concert in Portland in 1973 when she had just turned 16.
They went back to a hotel where Misley informed him of her age and shared details about her troubled family background.
The lawsuit alleges that Tyler engaged in criminal s**ual conduct and then sent her home in a taxi.
He later offered her a ticket to another show but arranged separate travel due to her status as a minor.
The lawsuit further claims that Tyler used his fame and influence to groom, manipulate, exploit, and s**ually assault Misley over the course of three years in various states across the country, including California.
It states that after her sophomore year in high school, Tyler brought Misley to stay with him in Boston, convincing her not to return home and accompany him on tour instead.
He even convinced Misley’s mother to grant him legal custody, promising better support and education for her.
In 1975, Misley became pregnant, and the lawsuit alleges that Tyler, as her legal guardian and the father of her unborn child, discouraged her from seeking proper prenatal care out of fear of getting in trouble.
Later, when Misley suffered from smoke inhalation in a burning apartment, Tyler coerced her into having an abortion, causing her significant distress.
Misley’s relationship with Tyler was previously documented in a Rolling Stone profile in 1976, where she was described as his constant companion.
She has also been featured in a 2021 documentary, Look Away, focusing on the abuse of young women in the music industry during the 70s and 80s.
Tyler’s memoir from 2011 includes explicit details of his relationship with an anonymous teenage “groupie,” resembling Misley, and highlights his infatuation.
Misley’s lawsuit claims that Tyler’s graphic descriptions in his memoir caused her additional emotional distress, shame, humiliation, and fear.
She recounts seeing herself labeled as “DEFENDANT DOE 1’s teen lover” in a tabloid, accompanied by explicit details of her coerced abortion.
In recent years, Misley has become an anti-abortion advocate, using her experience with Tyler to support campaigns limiting abortion rights.
The lawsuit was filed just before the end of a three-year window provided by a 2019 California law, allowing adult survivors to file lawsuits for childhood s**ual abuse.
This deadline has led to a surge in lawsuits, including over 2,000 against the Catholic church.
