LOS ANGELES – Smokey Robinson filed a countersuit Wednesday against four former housekeepers who went to court earlier this month accusing the Motown legend of repeated sexual assaults during their employment.
Robinson, 85, and his wife Frances leveled accusations of slander, infliction of emotional distress and elder abuse against the unnamed women, who filed their lawsuit earlier this month and held a news conference in which one of their attorneys described the singer as a serial rapist.
The countersuit, filed by attorney Christopher Frost but not yet available in the Los Angeles Superior Court system, seeks $500 million in damages from the accusers. The countersuit alleges the women fabricated their claims in an effort to extort money from the legendary singer, and contends that Robinson and his wife treated the former housekeepers like family members.
Attorneys John Harris and Herbert Hayden, who represent the four women who sued Robinson, issued a statement Wednesday calling the countersuit “nothing more than an attempt to silence and intimidate the survivors of Mr. Robinson’s sexual battery and assault.”
“It is a baseless and vindictive legal maneuver designed to re- victimize, shift blame and discourage others from coming forward,” the attorneys said. “This type of retaliatory litigation is precisely what California’s anti-SLAPP laws were enacted to prevent.”
They contended that the countersuit “mischaracterizes the facts and seeks to punish his victims for speaking out.”
The lawsuit filed by the four former housekeepers in early May includes allegations of sexual battery, assault, false imprisonment, negligence, hostile work environment and intentional infliction of emotional distress, along with alleged labor violations such as failure to pay minimum wage and overtime and failure to provide rest breaks and meal periods.
The lawsuit alleges that Robinson forced himself on the unnamed plaintiffs multiple times, generally while his wife — Frances — was out of the home.
One of the plaintiffs alleges Robinson assaulted her at least seven times between March 2023 until her “forced resignation” in February 2024. She alleges Robinson would summon her to his bedroom at the couple’s Chatsworth home when his wife was out of the home, and he would greet her wearing only underwear, then proceed to sexually assault her despite her protestations.
Another plaintiff said she was sexually assaulted by the singer nearly two dozen times between 2016 and 2020, when she was also forced to resign, according to the suit. A third plaintiff alleges in the suit that she was “sexually harassed, sexually assaulted and raped” during “most of her entire employment” between 2012 and 2024.
The fourth plaintiff said she began working for the Robinsons in 2006, with Robinson allegedly sexually assaulting her in 2007 “when she accompanied him to his Las Vegas home,” according to the suit. The woman contends the assaults continued until her resignation in April 2024.
Robinson’s countersuit, which was reviewed by multiple media outlets, flatly denies any wrongdoing by Robinson, saying the women were treated “with the utmost kindness and generosity.” The suit contends the women initially made demands for $100 million from the singer, and filed their lawsuit after that attempt failed.
The countersuit also seeks to have the women’s original lawsuit dismissed, and to have the women’s names made public, noting that they took part in a well-attended news conference with their lawyers to announce the lawsuit.
A week after the lawsuit was announced, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department confirmed that its Special Victims Unit was “actively investigating criminal allegations involving William Robinson AKA `Smokey Robinson.’ The investigation is in the early stages, and we have no further comment.”
Robinson rose to fame as the lead singer and songwriter for the Motown group The Miracles, churning out hits such as “Shop Around,” “I Second That Emotion” and “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me.” As a solo artist, he recorded hits such as “Baby That’s Backatcha,” “Cruisin’,” “Being With You” and “Tell Me Tomorrow.”
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988.
