A lawsuit accusing Marilyn Manson of sexual assault was dismissed on Tuesday by a federal judge, who cited the fact that the accuser in the case, Ashley Morgan Smithline, had failed to secure new legal representation after her attorney left the case last year. Smithline, a model, first named Manson—real name Brian Warner—as her alleged abuser in a now-deleted Instagram post in February 2021. In her suit, filed four months later, she claimed the rock star had brutally abused her over the course of a two-year relationship, during which time he repeatedly bound, raped, bit, and whipped her. She also alleged that he cut her with a swastika-emblazoned knife. Smithline has been silent since her lawyer, Jay D. Ellwanger, departed the case in October 2022. She ultimately missed a Dec. 5 deadline to inform the court that she had found a new attorney or would be representing herself. “We thank and commend Ashley Smithline for dismissing her claims against Brian Warner without seeking or receiving anything in return,” Warner’s attorney said in a statement. “Ms. Smithline has refused to be manipulated by others who are trying to pursue their own agendas against Mr. Warner.” The case was dismissed without prejudice, giving Smithline the chance to file her complaint again in the future.
