Neil Portnow’s sexual assault accuser asks for case to be dismissed
A musician who filed legal action against Neil Portnow, the ex-CEO of the Grammy Awards, citing a sexual assault incident in 2018, in November 2023, has asked for the case to be dismissed.
According to legal documents, the reason for her seeking the dismissal of the case is her fears of being identified and the surprise resignation of her attorney. The letter was sent to Judge Analisa Torres of Federal District Court in Manhattan over the weekend through email, and later published on the court’s website.
In the filing, the woman revealed she had been advised by her legal representative that the prosecution would file a motion that would likely be granted, which would have revealed her identity, which she said could cause “potential grave harm.”
“The circumstances surrounding this case have created a genuine concern for my safety, and emotional well-being,” she wrote in the legal letter to Torres, seen by Pitchfork. “Dismissing the case would alleviate this fear and allow me to move forward without unnecessary risks.”
On May 6th, her lawyer, Jeffrey R. Anderson, filed a motion to stop working with his client due to claims he was unaware the letter had been sent, stating, “the attorney-client relationship has deteriorated beyond repair.”
Her legal team had previously defended her right to not use her real name in the case, however, in the letter, the accuser said they “did not accurately reflect my position.”
The woman, an internationally recognised musician who once played a concert at New York’s Carnegie Hall, claimed in the initial legal document that she met Portnow in 2018 at a hotel room in New York City at a Grammy event. She alleged that he gave her a drink that made her lose consciousness intermittently, and while she was unconscious, he assaulted her, which he denied.
Following the filing, a representative for Portnow, who stepped down as the Grammy Awards CEO in 2019, wrote in an email response that the accusations were “completely false” and “undoubtedly motivated by Mr Portnow’s refusal to comply with the Plaintiff’s outrageous demands for money and assistance in obtaining a residence visa for her.”
Furthermore, the Recording Academy were also listed in the case as a defendant, with the claimant alleging they “knew or should have known of Defendant Portnow’s sexually assaultive behavior towards women” and had “aided and abetted Portnow’s conduct to protect their reputations.”
In response, the Recording Academy said in November: “We continue to believe the claims to be without merit and intend to vigorously defend the Academy in this lawsuit.”
This is a developing story.
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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