Smokey Robinson faced a 2015 sexual assault investigation; no charges were filed
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Motown legend Smokey Robinson is once again under scrutiny with renewed allegations of sexual assault.
Authorities investigated a previous sexual assault allegation against Robinson in 2015, but no charges were filed due to insufficient evidence, prosecutors said Friday.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office confirmed the decade-old investigation and its decision to decline charges in a statement Friday. The office said no details would be provided because of the current investigation of Robinson.
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Smokey Robinson faces new scrutiny after a 2015 sexual assault investigation closed. (Amy Sussman/Getty Images)
Robinson’s attorney, Christopher Frost, said in a statement they are “pleased” the district attorney “confirmed there was no basis to file charges a decade ago.”
“One unfortunate aspect of celebrity is that it is not uncommon to be the target of spurious and unsubstantiated allegations,” Frost said. “Mr. Robinson looks forward to the conclusion of the current investigation and has no doubt that a similar determination will be reached here.”
Robinson, 85, was accused of sexual misconduct and false imprisonment May 6 in a $50 million lawsuit filed by four unnamed former employees, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
The lawsuit said Robinson harassed and assaulted his former housekeepers who worked at his Chatsworth home between 2006 and 2024.
Frances, Robinson’s wife of 25 years, was also accused of perpetuating a “hostile work environment.”
Robinson’s attorney previously called the housekeepers’ allegations “vile” and “false.”
Frances, Robinson’s wife of 25 years, was also accused of perpetuating a “hostile work environment.” (Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez/AFP via Getty Images)
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Earlier this week, Robinson and his wife filed a $500 million cross-complaint against the former staff members. In court documents filed Wednesday in LA Superior Court, the couple accuse the four Jane Does and their legal representatives of slander, financial elder abuse, intentional infliction of emotional distress, invasion of privacy, civil conspiracy and other claims.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office confirmed the decade-old investigation and its decision not to file charges. (Lester Cohen)
The lawsuit alleges that the accusations against Robinson were “fabricated in support of their extortionate scheme.” The documents further stated that “Mr. and Ms. Robinson did not view, or treat, people in their employ as just employees. They treated them as extended family.”
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According to the cross-complaint, the Robinsons had vacationed with the accusers, exchanged gifts and celebrated holidays and birthdays together. The lawsuit stated that the plaintiffs “asked for and accepted help from the Robinsons, including several thousands of dollars, monetary support for members of at least one Plaintiff’s family, clothes, dental surgery, and even a car.”
The Jane Does’ lawyers, John Harris and Herbert Hayden, who were named as defendants in the Robinsons’ cross-complaint along with their firm Harris & Hayden, responded to the lawsuit in a statement to Fox News Digital.
Robinson was a key figure in the Motown Records machine of the 1960s. (Leni Sinclair/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
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“The cross-complaint filed by Mr. Christopher Frost on behalf of William ‘Smokey’ Robinson and Frances Robinson is nothing more than an attempt to silence and intimidate the survivors of Mr. Robinson’s sexual battery and assault,” they said.
“It is a baseless and vindictive legal maneuver designed to re-victimize, shift blame and discourage others from coming forward. This type of retaliatory litigation is precisely what California’s anti-SLAPP laws were enacted to prevent.”
Robinson is a member of both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He was a key figure in the Motown Records machine of the 1960s as both an artist and a writer and was one of the top hitmakers of the era with songs like “Tears of a Clown” and “The Tracks of My Tears.”
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Fox News Digital’s Ashley Hume, Tracy Wright and The Associated Press contributed to this report.