Taylor wins a swift rebuttal Pop star ‘wants to be an example to others’
POP superstar Taylor Swift has won her court battle against a radio DJ who she claims groped her during a meet-and-greet session with fans.
David Mueller sued Ms Swift for $3m (€2.5m), saying he was sacked after she had lied to his bosses by claiming that he put his hand up her skirt and grabbed her bottom.
Ms Swift, 27, is counter-suing for a nominal $1, saying she wants to act as an example to other women who have been sexually assaulted.
She hugged her lawyers in Denver after US district judge William Martinez threw out the case against her, finding that she had not set out to have Mueller fired.
Ms Swift, who is estimated to be worth $280m (€235m) and who has 85 million Twitter followers, had accused Mueller of a ‘despicable, horrifying and shocking’ assault in June 2013 in Denver.
‘He stayed attached to my bare ass cheek as I lurched away from him. It was a definite grab. A very long grab,’ she said.
A photograph taken at the moment she was allegedly groped showed the star flanked by Mueller, 55, and his then girlfriend Shannon Melcher. Ms Swift told the court she did not report the assault to police because she did not want to make a fuss in front of fans or let the incident ‘define her life’.
However, her management team told Mueller’s bosses at Denver radio station KYGO and he was fired from his $150,000-a-year job.
Ms Swift’s mother, Andrea, 59, told the court Taylor had even thanked Mueller after the photosession. ‘It made me question why I taught her to be so polite,’ she said.
Mueller denied groping Swift and said he was merely ‘jostling’ to get in position for the photos. But Swift’s former bodyguard, Greg Dent, told the court that he saw Mueller’s hand go under her skirt, causing her to jump.
There are still several issues left to decide, including Mueller’s allegations over his sacking against Ms Swift’s mother and Frank Bell, who handled Swift’s radio promotions.
The court will also examine the singer’s assault allegation.
She is seeking a verdict holding Mueller responsible and says that she wants to serve ‘as an example to other women who may resist publicly reliving similar outrageous and humiliating acts’.
‘He stayed attached to my bare ass cheek’