Country Singer's Silence in Court Costs Him Nearly $1.8M

A federal judge has ordered country singer Jimmie Allen to pay nearly $1.8 million to a woman who accused him of sexual assault, after Allen stopped responding to the lawsuit entirely. The default judgment, entered June 18, closes out the last of two civil sexual assault cases filed against Allen in 2023 - not with a trial, but with a court ruling that he forfeited the right to contest the claims by walking away from the process.

A Lawsuit Allen Stopped Answering

U.S. District Judge Aleta A. Trauger entered the judgment against Allen and his company, awarding the plaintiff, identified in court records as Jane Doe 2, a total of $1,790,541 in compensatory and punitive damages. According to court documents, Allen and his company initially answered the lawsuit and denied many of the allegations, but the court entered a default judgment after they failed to comply with multiple case management and discovery orders and did not respond to the plaintiff’s motion for sanctions - or, later, her motion seeking damages.

The lawsuit, filed in June 2023, alleged that Allen secretly recorded a sexual encounter with the woman without her consent in a Las Vegas hotel room, and continued sexual contact after she withdrew consent and asked him to stop. Allen has denied the underlying allegations in earlier stages of the litigation.

What the Judge Found

The judgment breaks down to roughly $597,000 in compensatory damages - covering emotional distress, past treatment costs and future treatment costs - and approximately $1.2 million in punitive damages. In her ruling, Trauger described the “reprehensibility” of Allen’s alleged conduct as “severe,” citing evidence that he “intentionally and surreptitiously filmed his sexual encounter with plaintiff without her consent.” A magistrate judge’s report, which the district court adopted without objection, found the evidence showed the woman suffered significant emotional trauma requiring ongoing counseling.

A Pattern of Legal Trouble

This was the second of two sexual assault-related lawsuits filed against Allen in 2023. The first, brought by his former manager in May of that year, accused Allen of assault and sexual abuse over an 18-month period; Allen denied the claims and countersued for defamation, and both sides agreed to dismiss the case in May 2024. The manager’s separate claims against Allen’s company, Wide Open Music, and its founder are still pending.

The fallout from the 2023 lawsuits cost Allen his record deal: his label, BBR Music Group, dropped him from its roster shortly after the second suit was filed, and he later lost his management company, booking agency and publicist as well. Allen’s attorney has not issued a public statement on the June 18 ruling. The judgment marks the most significant legal consequence to date in a set of allegations that have followed Allen, largely outside the criminal system, for more than three years.

References: Delaware native Jimmie Allen ordered to pay nearly $1.8 million in sexual assault lawsuit | Jimmie Allen Ordered to Pay Nearly $1.8 Million to Sexual Assault Accuser