Judge rejects Royel Otis member’s bid to unmask Reddit users
Royel Otis guitarist Royel Maddell has had a bid to unmask anonymous Reddit users rejected by a US judge.
The legal filing relates to a now-deleted thread on the r/triplej subreddit, which accused the guitarist, real name Leroy Bressington, of having a sexual relationship with a minor while he was a music teacher.
According to AFR, Bressington filed the lawsuit with the District Court of Northern California in October. His legal case related to requesting Reddit to disclose confidential user data of users who had spread the allegations on the social media platform ahead of suing them for defamation, which was rejected on December 24th, 2025.
Per the report, it’s alleged that the anonymous Reddit accounts claimed that Bressington was allegedly charged following a non-consensual sexual relationship with a minor while he was her music teacher and was dropped by his record label.
District Court Judge William Alsup noted that Bressington denied being accused of this behaviour by a former partner, being charged by an authority, and having ever been dropped by a label.
However, the court document also reads, “As only one indication among others, Bressington has not specifically rejected as false one of the most basic assertions alleged: that when not a minor he had sex with a minor.”
It also states, “Again, open questions linger, but while nothing now squarely limits the statutory authority to assist, much already informs the exercise of that authority in accord with sound discretion.”
The anonymous allegations made on Reddit surfaced shortly after the release of their single ‘Moody’ last year, which contains the controversial lyric, “My girl’s a bitch when she’s moody.”
In response to accusations of misogyny, the band said in a statement, “This song is written from a specific perspective it is not intended to convey a broader view or standpoint about women in general. We apologise if anyone understood those lyrics otherwise.”
Bressington is yet to comment on the legal filing.
For help, advice or more information regarding sexual harassment, assault and rape in the UK, visit the Rape Crisis charity website. In the US, visit RAINN.
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