Judge Dismisses T.I. and Tiny’s Sexual Assault Lawsuit

Rapper T.I. and singer Tiny’s legal troubles regarding alleged sexual assault have been put to rest, at least temporarily.

This week, a judge granted their motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by a woman who claimed she was sexually assaulted by the couple in 2005. According to court documents, U.S. District Court Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett ordered the complaint to be dismissed. The woman, referred to as Jane Doe in legal papers, initially filed her lawsuit several months ago.

Doe accused T.I. and Tiny, whose real names are Clifford Harris Jr. and Tameka Harris, of sexual assault, battery, negligence, false imprisonment, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Her lawsuit was filed on January 2 in Los Angeles County Superior Court, and the allegations were previously a part of a 2021 investigation by the Los Angeles police.

That investigation concluded in September 2021, with the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office deciding not to bring charges against the couple because the case fell outside the 10-year statute of limitations.

The lawsuit was filed under California’s Sexual Abuse and Cover-Up Accountability Act. This law allows civil suits for sexual assault cases that have exceeded the statute of limitations if it is believed that entities responsible for the damages engaged in a cover-up. This act permits such suits to be filed through the end of 2023.

From the beginning, T.I. and Tiny “emphatically and categorically” denied the allegations and maintained their innocence, asserting that “the claims in this story have changed time and time again.” Legal proceedings continued in Los Angeles County Superior Court until April, when the couple requested to move the case to federal court.

In late June, they filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds that the plaintiff’s claims were time-barred and insufficiently detailed to support any claim.

Judge Garnett granted the motion to dismiss but allowed the plaintiff a window of several weeks to amend her complaint. If the woman fails to file an amended complaint, the case will be dismissed without prejudice.

Neither the plaintiff’s legal representative nor a representative for T.I. and Tiny immediately responded to requests for comment.

This dismissal follows closely on the heels of another controversy involving T.I. The rapper was arrested in Atlanta, according to various sources. T.I. was detained at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport because police confused him with another man bearing the same name who had an outstanding warrant in Baltimore, according to CBS News. He was released within hours and has since shrugged off the incident, even announcing an upcoming performance in Alaska.

“ALASKA I’m on da way,” T.I. shared on Instagram.