Note: This article contains descriptions of alleged sexual assault.
Jermaine Jackson, a Jackson 5 co-founder and older brother of Michael Jackson, has been ordered to pay Rita Barrett $6.5 million in damages after failing to respond to a rape lawsuit she filed in 2023, TMZ reports and court records confirm. Barrett alleged in the lawsuit that Jackson broke into her residence and raped her in 1988. Her lawyers failed to track Jackson down, but eventually received court approval to serve him legal notice in The Los Angeles Times. Last month, having received no response from Jackson, Barrett’s lawyers filed a 95-page document arguing for a default judgment in the case, which was granted on May 14. The judge also ordered Jackson to pay Barrett legal costs of $7,131.84.
Barrett said in the filing that she had known Jackson for several years before the alleged assault, through her work as a musician’s contractor. The suit also alleged that Motown founder Berry Gordy—who was not named as a defendant—helped cover up the rape after Barrett told him what had happened the following day.
Barrett was able to pursue the civil lawsuit, filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court, under California’s Sexual Abuse and Cover Up Accountability Act, which temporarily waives the statute of limitations on certain sexual misconduct claims. Despite failing to respond to Barrett’s lawsuit, Jackson attended the Michael biopic premiere in Hollywood last month. Pitchfork has emailed representatives for Barrett and Jackson for comment.
If you or someone you know has been affected by sexual assault, we encourage you to reach out for support:
RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline
https://www.rainn.org
1 800 656 HOPE (4673)
Crisis Text Line
SMS: Text “HELLO” or “HOLA” to 741-741
