FKA Twigs gets trial date in Shia LaBeouf sexual assault case

FKA Twigs’ lawsuit against Shia LaBeouf, alleging sexual battery, assault and infliction of emotional distress, has been given a date to go to trial.

In December 2020, the musician – real name Tahliah Barnett – sued the actor, accusing him of “relentless abuse” during their relationship.

Now, the case will be heard before a jury in a Los Angeles court next year, with the trial currently set to start on April 17, 2023, Rolling Stone reports.

A remote hearing in the case was heard in June 2021. At that time, Barnett’s lawyer told a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge that “the parties have been engaged in productive settlement negotiations and are in the process of arranging for an early mediation”. The judge then allowed time for the musician and the actor to work out a settlement out of court, setting a follow-up court date for December 2021.

FKA Twigs on the BandLab NME Awards 2022 red carpet. Credit: Eva Pentel

“The gaslighting has gone on long enough here and it’s time to hold Shia LaBeouf accountable,” Barnett’s lawyer Bryan Freedman told Rolling Stone today (May 2). “My client wants a trial date.”

Neither Barnett nor LaBeouf have commented publicly on the trial date being set at the time of writing.

Barnett has claimed that, during a relationship lasting just over a year, LaBeouf abused her physically, emotionally and mentally multiple times. “I’d like to be able to raise awareness on the tactics that abusers use to control you and take away your agency,” she told the New York Times when her allegations were first made public.

LaBeouf initially responded to claims from Barnett and another former partner, Karolyn Pho, in an email to the New York Times. “I’m not in any position to tell anyone how my behaviour made them feel,” he wrote. “I have no excuses for my alcoholism or aggression, only rationalisations. I have been abusive to myself and everyone around me for years. I have a history of hurting the people closest to me. I’m ashamed of that history and am sorry to those I hurt. There is nothing else I can say.”

Shia LaBeouf CREDIT: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for HFA

He added that “many of these allegations are not true” but said that he owed the women “the opportunity to air their statements publicly and accept accountability for those things I have done”.

In February 2021, he denied Barnett’s allegations, stating through his lawyers that he denied “each and every” claim from the musician, including causing her “any injury or loss”. He added that she is not “entitled to any relief or damages whatsoever”.

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