Developing: Court Cancels First Hearing in Afrika Bambaataa Child Sex Trafficking Civil Case–Judge May Rule in John Doe’s Favor
Artist: Aya Downs
Bronx–The court cancelled the first scheduled hearing in the widely publicized child sex trafficking civil case brought against hip hop pioneer Lance Taylor aka Afrika Bambaataa by an unknown former member of his Zulu Nation organization.
The hearing was to take place via virtual conference on Monday, November 1, 2021, at 3:15 p.m. EST and the court ordered the defense to show cause against the plaintiff’s request to remain anonymous in documents and proceedings to the public and media.
The court cancelled the hearing the same morning.
Bambaataa has been unresponsive to the lawsuit and has no attorney on record. Because the court canceled the November 1st proceeding before its scheduled time, it is unclear if Bambaataa was planning to attend.
The lawsuit filed in Bronx Supreme Court by John Doe on August 9, 2021, is under the “look-back” window provided in the Child Victims Act (CVA) allowing adult survivors of child sexual abuse whose statute of limitations has run out to file civil claims against perpetrators.
In 2019, Justice George Silver set a precedent by allowing plaintiffs in CVA litigation the same anonymity protections as victims in criminal cases. His ruling has affected thousands of lawsuits in New York.
Bambaataa’s undemonstrative involvement in his own defense along with Justice Silver’s ruling could have made Monday’s hearing moot. The court may have decided not to waste anyone’s time with a virtual conference and may make an order granting John Doe anonymity in documents, to the public, and in the media.
We will keep you updated. Metropolis
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