Troubled zone: Bob Dylan sued for alleged sexual abuse of 12-year-old in 1960s

An unnamed woman has sued folk singer-songwriter Bob Dylan alleging he sexually abused her after giving her drugs and alcohol in 1965 when she was 12 years old. A spokesman for Dylan, now 80, said the allegations were false. “The 56-year-old claim is untrue and will be vigorously defended,” the spokesman said.

In a civil lawsuit filed late on Friday with the New York Supreme Court, the woman identified as J.C. said Dylan sexually abused her at his New York apartment over a six-week period “leaving her emotionally scarred and psychologically damaged to this day.” Dylan, who was in his mid-20s at the time, “exploited his status as a musician to provide J.C. with alcohol and drugs and sexually abuse her multiple times,” the lawsuit said. Her lawsuit was submitted just ahead of a New York state deadline, authorized in a 2019 law, for people to file legal claims involving allegations of sexual abuse of children. — Reuters