A California judge tossed out most of Marilyn Manson's defamation lawsuit against Evan Rachel Wood last week following the actress' claims of abuse during her relationship with Manson from 2007 to 2010.
"The Court grants Wood's special motion to strike in part," ruled Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Teresa A. Beaudet in the tentative order, invoking California's anti-SLAPP law and its protections on individual free speech, according to Deadline.
Manson's allegations in his defamation suit that Wood penned a fake FBI letter and a checklist for other alleged Manson abuse victims have been tossed out by the Judge.
"We are very pleased with the Court's ruling, which affirms and protects Evan's exercise of her fundamental First Amendment rights," Wood's lead attorney Michael Kump told Deadline. "As the Court correctly found, Plaintiff failed to show that his claims against her have even minimal merit."
Manson's lawyer Howard King said the ruling was "disappointing but not unexpected" and added that they will seek an appeal.
"The Court telegraphed this outcome when it refused to consider the bombshell sworn declaration of former plaintiff Ashley Smithline, which detailed how women were systematically pressured by Evan Rachel Wood and Illma Gore to make false claims about Brian Warner," King said.
(Photo: Craig Noce)
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