Apparently Marilyn Manson can’t keep his crotch to himself – for the second time in four months he’s been accused of rubbing his crotch on a security guard’s head.
David M. Diaz of Anoka County, Minnesota, filed a $75,000 civil suit against Manson on Tuesday in a Minneapolis federal court, according to a court spokesperson. Diaz, a security guard working the front barricade at Minneapolis’ Orpheum Theatre, said the controversial rocker grabbed his head, held his hips against it and gyrated. The incident allegedly took place October 27, 2000, during the first show of Manson’s Guns, God and Government tour.
Diaz is claiming battery and emotional distress, ridicule and shame, mental anguish, embarrassment, and humiliation as a result of Manson’s actions, the court spokesperson said. The suit also names Manson’s touring company, Jimmy’s Touring Inc.; local security firm ABCXYZ Corp., of which Diaz was an employee; and Vivendi Universal, the corporate owners of Universal Music Group, Interscope Records and Nothing Records.
Diaz filed the suit because he’s been the subject of ridicule and is considered “a joke” by everyone who knows of the incident, according to his lawyer, James Kaster.
“What compels me to get involved is [Diaz’s] sense of shame,” Kaster said. “And this just ain’t right. You just don’t treat people that way, I don’t care who you are. And frankly, a group of jurors in this state are going to be offended.”
Interscope and Manson’s management company had no comment at press time.
A court hearing has yet to be scheduled, since the plaintiffs have 60 days to serve a complaint to Manson’s lawyers, who then have 20 days to answer it. Then the two parties have 60 days to confer, during which time a settlement may be reached.
Manson is involved in a similar legal tangle stemming from a July Ozzfest stop in Clarkston, Michigan. A security guard there filed criminal charges of felony fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct and misdemeanor assault and battery against Manson in August. The complaint claims Manson spat on the guard’s head and then, while clad only in a G-string, rubbed his genital area on the man’s head and neck.
The singer pleaded not guilty to the charges in September. He’s due before the court again on Friday for a preliminary examination of the charges.
Kaster plans to use the Michigan security guard’s deposition to demonstrate a pattern of conduct in his case.
While the Michigan case involves criminal charges, Diaz’s is a civil one. Kaster said he was unaware whether his client had filed separate criminal charges, but that if he had, it would be “irrelevant” to this case.
