Jimmie Allen is being sued by his former day-to-day manager for alleged rape and sexual abuse. On Thursday (May 11), Variety published an extensive report about the country singer’s alleged repeated abuse against his former manager. Operating under the pseudonym Jane Doe, a young woman in her early 20s, details several occasions in which Allen sexually abused her during the 18 months they worked together at Wide Open Music, the company that managed Allen.
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She claims that Allen raped her in March 2021 during a work trip in Los Angeles when he was appearing on American Idol. Jane Doe claims she woke up naked in a hotel bed next to Allen and was experiencing intense pain and vaginal bleeding. “I was disconnected from my body, feeling a sense of panic,” Jane Doe explains of the encounter, adding that she recalls Allen insisting she take a Plan B pill saying, “‘I’ve been thinking about this for so long.’ He held me in place. At that point, any physical will was just out the door. I was pretty much paralyzed.”
Jane Doe has now filed a claim against Allen, his former management company that she worked for when the abuse occurred Wide Open Music, and its founder Ash Bowers. According to Variety, Jane Doe is suing Allen for sexual battery, assault, false imprisonment, sex trafficking, and emotional distress, while Bowers and Wide Open Music are being sued for gross negligence and participating in a venture engaged in sex trafficking. Among other incidents Jane Doe says she endured include forced groping, and verbal harassment, as well as Allen filming numerous sexual encounters in an effort to “blackmail her to stay silent,” according to the court documents filed by Jane Doe.
In a statement, Allen denies the allegations and says that their sexual relationship 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,” he said. “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.”
However, Jane Doe’s lawyer asserts that his client is not asking for money and that they instead requested to meet with “Allen and his legal counsel to discuss Allen’s behavior and resolution of our client’s claims,” her lawyer states. “At no time did our client make a monetary demand.”
In May 2023, Allen and his wife Alexis Gale announced that they were separating and that she is pregnant with their third child. They had their first child, daughter Naomi, in 2020, and their second daughter Zara in 2021. Allen has an eight-year-old son, Aadyn, from a previous relationship.
American Songwriter has reached out to Allen’s label, BBR Music Group, for a statement.
Photo by Debra L Rothenberg/Wireimage
