‘Enough was enough’: University of Washington student sues rapper Nelly over alleged rape in Auburn

Seattle Times

December 20, 2017
By Lewis Kamb
Twitter @lewiskamb
lkamb@seattletimes.com

The woman’s lawyer said her client reluctantly filed the suit, doing so only after Nelly publicly contended she had fabricated her rape story. King County prosecutors declined to file charges against him last week.

A 22-year-old University of Washington student sued the rapper Nelly on Wednesday, claiming he sexually assaulted her on his tour bus while it was parked outside a Walmart in Auburn after a performance in October, then later damaged her reputation in his public denials.

Monique Greene’s lawsuit against Cornell Haynes Jr., widely known as Nelly, seeks unspecified damages for the alleged sexual assault as well as defamation. 

Greene’s lawyer said Wednesday her client reluctantly filed the suit, doing so only after Nelly publicly contended Greene fabricated her rape story after prosecutors declined to file charges against him last week.

The Seattle Times generally does not identify alleged sexual-assault victims, but Greene’s attorney said she agreed to be publicly identified.

“She honestly decided to stand up for herself after that last horrible post they made against her,” Seattle attorney Karen Koehler said. “If they had not done that, she would’ve just kept her head down. She didn’t want to be a fighter at all. She didn’t want anyone to know what happened to her. But enough was enough.”