"We're happy"

Tyler wins sexual assault lawsuit

A federal judge in Manhattan has finally dismissed a lawsuit accusing Steven Tyler of sexually abusing a former teenage model twice in one day in the mid-1970s.(Bild: APA/Getty Images via AFP/GETTY IMAGES/Araya Doheny)

A federal judge in Manhattan has finally dismissed a lawsuit accusing Aerosmith singer Steven Tyler of sexually assaulting a former teenage model twice in one day in the mid-1970s. US District Judge Lewis Kaplan said Jeanne Bellino could not seek damages from 76-year-old Tyler under a 2000 law designed to protect victims of gender-based violence. 

He said it was futile to file an amended complaint and dismissed Bellino's case without prejudice. Kaplan had already dismissed an earlier lawsuit in February. Bellino's attorneys did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Allegations "vehemently" denied
Tyler had "vehemently" denied Bellino's allegations, including that he assaulted her in a phone booth while others in his entourage stood by laughing, and later touched her in a hotel. The alleged assaults occurred in the summer of 1975, when Bellino was 17 and Tyler was 27.

Bellino said she met Tyler after a friend arranged for her to meet Aerosmith after a fashion show in Manhattan. Bellino had sued in November 2023.

"We are pleased"
David Long-Daniels, an attorney for Tyler, said in an email that Kaplan had "carefully applied the facts to the law. That's all we can ask of a judge. We are especially happy for Steven and his family."

Tyler has also been defending himself against a Los Angeles lawsuit in which plaintiff Julia Misley alleged he sexually assaulted her in 1973 when she was 16 and he was 25. Bellino's law firm represented Misley in that case. Tyler's real name is Steven Tallarico.