Jamie Foxx was sued on Wednesday for allegedly sexually assaulting a patron at a rooftop bar in New York in 2015.
The woman, identified in the suit as Jane Doe, alleges that Foxx took her to a secluded corner of the Catch NYC rooftop lounge, rubbed her breasts and groped her under her pants against her will.
According to the suit, the woman and a friend were seated at a table next to Foxx and Mark Birnbaum, the owner of the bar. At around 1 a.m., the woman’s friend got up and asked Foxx for a photo.
Foxx agreed, and they took several photos. Foxx began complimenting the plaintiff, according to the suit, saying “Wow, you have that super model body” and “You smell so good.” The suit also states that he said she looked like Gabrielle Union.
She alleges that he then took her by the arm and led her to a more secluded part of the rooftop, where he groped her breasts underneath her crop top. The suit states that she was caught off guard and tried to step away, but that Foxx then stuck his hands down her pants and “put his fingers on and in Plaintiff’s vagina and anus.”
The suit alleges that a security guard witnessed the groping but did not intervene. The woman’s friend then came and found her, and Foxx stopped touching her and walked away.
“The alleged incident never happened,” a spokesperson for Foxx said in a statement. “In 2020, this individual filed a nearly identical lawsuit in Brooklyn. That case was dismissed shortly thereafter. The claims are no more viable today than they were then. We are confident they will be dismissed again. And once they are, Mr. Foxx intends to pursue a claim for malicious prosecution against this person and her attorneys for re-filing this frivolous action.”
The lawsuit seeks compensation for pain, suffering, emotional distress, anxiety and humiliation. It alleges that the woman was sore and had to seek medical treatment as a result of the assault.
The lawsuit also names Birnbaum and Catch NYC as defendants, alleging that they enabled the assault and failed to adequately supervise their employees.
The suit is one of many filed under New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which opened a one-year window to file sexual abuse claims that would otherwise be barred by the statute of limitations. The deadline to file such claims is Thursday.
Michael S. Lamonsoff, the plaintiff’s attorney, responded to Foxx’s denial in a statement on Friday.
“Our client and our firm will not be intimidated by Jamie Foxx’s age-old tactic of lies and threats against survivors of sexual assault,” he said. “Foxx’s allegations that a ‘frivolous’ lawsuit was filed against him and dismissed in 2020 are baseless and untrue. Although our client sought justice by coming to our firm, unfortunately, the Adult Survivor’s Act (ASA) had not passed yet as deliberations were ongoing in the State legislature. Thankfully, the ASA was passed, allowing our client to demand accountability for the abuse and mental anguish she had endured since the time of this heinous assault.”
Lamonsoff went on to argue that the one-year claim window is insufficient, and that there should be no statute of limitations at all for sexual assault.
“Those responsible must face consequences, especially those using their celebrity status to victimize others,” he said in the statement.
