Garth Brooks Judge Denies His Bid to Dismiss Rape Lawsuit

Garth Brooks‘ legal battle with the woman accusing him of rape and sexual assault will remain in California, at least for now.

According to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital, U.S. District Judge Michael Fitzgerald has denied the singer’s request to dismiss the complaint filed against him in the central district of California.

Brooks’ team had sought for his accuser — a makeup artist who identifies under the pseudonym Jane Roe — to re-file in Mississippi, where she lives.

But the judge denied Brooks’ motion to dismiss in California on the grounds that there is an “original action” still open in another state.

“The Court determines the most appropriate course of action is to allow the Mississippi court to adjudicate Plaintiff’s equitable arguments in the first instance,” the ruling reads, according to the documents.

Roe lives in Mississippi, but the alleged instances of rape and sexual assault took place in California.

• Brooks filed a preemptive lawsuit in Mississippi on Sept. 13, more than two weeks before Roe filed her sexual assault suit on Oct. 3.
• In his lawsuit, Brooks used pseudonyms for both himself and his accuser, and requested that the case proceed with anonymity on both sides.
• On Oct. 8, Brooks filed an amendment using his real name and hers, asking for a judge to dismiss his original filing.

Read More: Garth Brooks Sexual Assault Allegations Timeline

Brooks submitted his motion to dismiss the California case in mid-November, just after successfully moving the case from civil court (where Roe originally filed) to federal court. After his request to move states, Roe’s team countered that the case should be kept in California. They accused him of forum shopping, saying in part that there are no anti-SLAPP laws in Mississippi like there are in California (and, according to the Tennessee Bar Association, in Brooks’ home state of Tennessee.)

• SLAPP lawsuits are lawsuits intended to intimidate someone out of saying something critical in a court filing.
• Without anti-SLAPP laws, someone could face an expensive lawsuit just for filing charges.

Roe worked as Brooks’ hair and makeup artist for a period of years, though he and she have shared different accounts of the exact timeline of her employment. She was also a longtime employee of Brooks’ wife, fellow singer Trisha Yearwood.

In her filing, Roe accuses Brooks of multiple instances of rape and sexual assault. She describes two events that allegedly took place in 2019: One in a Los Angeles hotel room, when she says he raped her, and another later that year, when he allegedly groped her while grabbing his crotch and propositioning her for sex.

Her suit also describes a pattern of verbal and physical abuse, all of which Brooks denies.