A Los Angeles County judge granted a trial date Wednesday to the woman who claims Marilyn Manson sexually assaulted her at his West Hollywood home studio in 2010 and later subjected her to physical and emotional abuse when she worked as his assistant.
At a court hearing, Judge Steve Cochran noted the case had “traveled a windy road” after it was first filed in 2021 and then dismissed and revived twice. He said he was willing to grant an expedited date if plaintiff Ashley Walters wanted one. When Walters’ lawyer requested a date in November of next year, he quickly set the case for a jury trial on Nov. 15, 2027. While that date might not sound expedited, it’s relatively fast for the county, where new trials are routinely being set for mid-2028.
“We’re confident the case will never get to trial after the court hears our upcoming motion for summary judgment,” the musician’s lawyer, Howard King, said in a statement after the hearing.
In her lawsuit, Walters alleges Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner, pushed her onto a bed in May 2010, pinned her arms, and tried to kiss her before moving behind her, biting her ear, and forcing her hand into his underwear. She says she later accepted a job as his assistant after he suggested they could collaborate professionally. She claims he went on to whip her, throw plates at her, force her to stand on a chair for long periods, and hurl her into a wall during drug-fueled rages.
The long-running case has survived multiple challenges by Warner. A different judge dismissed it as untimely in May 2022, but an appellate panel later revived it, allowing Walters to try to show that trauma-induced memory suppression delayed her filing. Judge Cochran dismissed the case again in December 2025 after finding Walters failed to make that showing.
But Cochran reversed that decision in January after Walters invoked a new California law, AB 250, that opened a two-year window for certain previously time-barred sexual assault claims. In June, Cochran rejected Warner’s latest effort to dismiss or narrow Walters’ third amended complaint.
Warner’s lawyers argued Walters’ allegations did not qualify for revival under AB 250 because she could not show she was physically restrained during the alleged sexual touching. Cochran said the dispute was too fact-specific to resolve at the pleading stage and allowed the case to proceed, leaving Warner free to challenge the claims later.
Beyond her core allegations, Walters also alleges she secretly brought food and drinks to Warner’s “starving and distraught” girlfriends while they hid in his home and that she witnessed Warner throw a prop skull at his former fiancée Evan Rachel Wood with enough force to leave a large welt. Warner has denied wrongdoing.
Walters first stepped forward in February 2021 as multiple women, including Wood, accused Warner of physical and emotional abuse. Rolling Stone later published a lengthy investigation in late 2021 after speaking with more than 55 sources. Warner, 57, reached out-of-court settlements with two accusers, including actress Esmé Bianco. He previously dropped defamation and harassment claims against Wood.
