Smokey Robinson accused by former housekeepers of sexual assault and
rape
[May 07, 2025]
By ANDREW DALTON
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Four former housekeepers of Smokey Robinson allege in
a lawsuit filed Tuesday that the Motown music luminary repeatedly
sexually assaulted and raped them while they worked for him.
The suit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court seeks at least $50 million
in damages over the alleged assaults, which the women say took place
between 2007 and 2024, and labor violations including a hostile work
environment, illegally long hours and lack of pay.
A message seeking comment from a representative for the 85-year-old
Robinson was not immediately answered.
The four women each say that Robinson would wait until he was alone with
them in his Los Angeles house then sexually assault and rape them over
their objections.
“We believe that Mr. Robinson is a serial and sick rapist, and must be
stopped,” the women's attorney John Harris said at a news conference.
All said they eventually quit over the assaults, though in some cases it
took several years. And all said they feared coming forward over fears
of retaliation, public shame and possible effects on their immigration
status.
“Having to tell their husband and children of these despicable actions
left them filled with shame and embarrassment," Harris said. “So
throughout their dreadful experiences with Mr. Robinson, all four women
remained silent.”
He said as low-wage earners, they also all feared “missing a payday, and
not being able to afford rent or buy food for their families.”
All four women withheld their legal names citing privacy concerns and
are identified as Jane Does in court documents. They appeared at the
news conference with their attorneys, but did not speak, and covered
their faces with masks.
The lawsuit also names Robinson's wife Frances Robinson as a defendant,
alleging that she enabled his behavior despite knowing about past sexual
misconduct. It also blames her for the hostile work environment, saying
she berated them with language that included ethnic slurs.
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Smokey Robinson attends the screening for "The Apollo" during the
2019 Tribeca Film Festival on April 24, 2019, in New York. (Photo by
Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)
 One woman said she worked for the
Robinsons from 2012 until 2024, and was assaulted at least 20 times
in that span. Another said she worked for them from 2014 until 2020,
and was assaulted at least 23 times. Another said she worked for
them for a year before quitting in 2024 and was assaulted at least
seven times. The fourth woman, who said she also acted as Frances
Robinson's personal assistant, hairdresser and cook, worked for them
for 18 years before resigning in 2024. She cited similar experiences
to the other women, but did not say how often she was assaulted.
The women, some of whom worked for the Robinsons at the same time as
each other, also kept stories of the assaults from one another, but
are now bonding over their experience, the attorneys said. They
declined to give details at the news conference about how they came
forward and learned there were others.
The suit seeks damages based on sexual battery, assault, false
imprisonment, gender violence and other allegations.
“Obviously, no amount of money can compensate these women for what
Mr. Robinson put them through,” Harris said. But he said the $50
million was warranted “based on the gravity of Mr. Robinson's
despicable and reprehensible misconduct.”
Plaintiffs' attorney Herbert Hayden said that while they felt the
assaults are worthy of criminal investigation, the women have not
filed police reports, based on the same fears that kept them from
coming forward.
Robinson, a member of both the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the
Songwriters Hall of Fame, was among the biggest hitmakers of the
1960s — both with his group the Miracles and as a solo artist, with
songs including “Tears of a Clown" and “The Tracks of My Tears."
He was a central part of the Motown Records music machine in his
hometown of Detroit as an artist, producer and songwriter for other
artists.
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