Grammy Award-winning producer and songwriter The-Dream is seeking to have most of a sexual assault lawsuit filed against him dismissed.
Terius Gesteelde-Diamant, 47, was accused of rape and sexual assault by former protégé Chanaaz Mangroe (who played Channii Monroe) in June.
In response, Gastilde-Diamante, who has written songs for Beyoncé, Rihanna, Justin Bieber and Mariah Carey, denied the accusations.
On Friday, his legal representatives filed to have the case dismissed, calling the charges “a textbook example of a ‘shotgun defence'”.
The term “shotgun complaint” is used to describe a complaint that makes multiple allegations without providing the other party fair notice of the allegations.
In court documents seen by BBC News, lawyers asked for a number of amendments to Ms Mangro’s complaint, insisting certain passages were “irrelevant” and “disgraceful”.
They sought to have the rape charge dismissed, arguing that rape was not a separate civil cause of action under California law.
They also argued that the sex trafficking charges failed to allege necessary elements such as “commercial sex acts.”
His legal representatives are also asking that his brand, Contra Paris, LLC, be removed from the lawsuit because the company is headquartered in Delaware and therefore lacks personal jurisdiction in California.
“This complaint is a classic example of a ‘shotgun defense’ and must be dismissed in its entirety because it fails to allege specific factual allegations against each defendant,” said Desirée F. Moore, an attorney representing Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant. . Moore) said.
She added that Mangro’s complaint “contains dozens of allegations that are completely unrelated to her sexual assault and sex trafficking charges and are intended solely to smear Diamante’s name and reputation.”
according to a lawsuit filed in JuneMs Mangroe said Mr Gesteelde-Diamant repeatedly forced her to have sex, choked her and on one occasion filmed an intimate encounter before threatening to show it to others.
According to the 60-page lawsuit, Ms. Mangro is seeking damages for “lost wages” and “mental pain, suffering and severe emotional distress.”
Ms. Mangroe, who is originally from the Netherlands and worked in the United States as a singer and songwriter, said in the lawsuit that she first met Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant in January 2015.
The 33-year-old claimed he “subjected” her to “violent sex” which left her covered in bruises; forced her to drink “excessive amounts of alcohol”; strangled her until she was “almost unconscious”; and forced her to drink ” Too much alcohol”. He forced her to have sex in a cinema and raped her in a refurbished Sprinter van.
She also said he “told her he would make her the next Beyoncé and Rihanna.”
Within days of the initial meeting, Ms. Mangro claimed Mr. Gastede-Diamante began pressuring her to have sex and told her it was “part of the process,” the lawsuit states.
The 33-year-old said he locked her in a dark room and “only stopped having sex with her when she said she loved him”.
Ms. Mangro alleges in the lawsuit that the unwanted sexual contact continued and that Mr. Gastilde-Diamante made promises to her, such as suggesting that he could arrange for her to be Beyoncé’s next Tour and Grammy Awards opening act.
Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant is the winner of eight Grammy Awards and was nominated in the newly created Songwriter of the Year category at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards in February 2023.
In a statement provided to The New York Times in June, a representative for Mr. Gesteelde-Diamant said the claims were “untrue and defamatory.”
“I oppose all forms of harassment and have always worked hard to help people achieve their professional goals,” the statement read.
“As someone who is committed to making a positive impact on my fellow artists and the world at large, I am deeply offended and saddened by these allegations.”
BBC News has contacted Ms Mangroe for comment.
