The Daily Beast
This alleged serial stalker has a second chance. Now he is accused of rape.
Emma McIntyreIn a new lawsuit filed earlier this week, an unidentified model accused fashion retailer Guess of allowing her rapist, claiming that the company knew co-founder Paul Marciano’s usual predatory behavior – including the use of a “rape room” – but did nothing to protect women. The plaintiff, identified anonymously as Jane Doe, said that Guess knew of “at least seven women” who were assaulted or sexually harassed by Marciano over the years, but still allowed him to remain with the company “because Guess prioritizes profits over the safety of their models “, noting that the company brought him back after he resigned in 2018 due to allegations of sexual misconduct. In fact, Marciano – who founded Guess Jeans in 1981 alongside his brothers – left the position of executive chairman of the board in June 2018 after the company paid half a million dollars in deals for several women who accused him of sexual harassment. . Months earlier, supermodel Kate Upton turned to social media to say it was “disappointing to realize that such an iconic female brand” was “still strengthening” Marciano as its creative director. Later, she would claim that Marciano assaulted her when she was just 18, claiming that he touched her, grabbed her breasts and kissed her forcibly. Marciano, for his part, called Upton’s accusations “absolutely false”. Kate Upton accuses Paul Marciano of Guess Jeans of sexual harassment. allegations of misconduct could arise, and they did, ”the company quietly announced in January 2019 that it would renew Marciano’s contract and keep him as creative director. (Marciano remained on the board after resigning as president.) “It is common practice for companies to return men accused of sexual misconduct,” anti-sexist lawyer and educator Adrienne Lawrence told The Daily Beast. “These companies are leveraging several facts, namely that the public will not fail to sponsor their business due to their association with the defendants. These companies also know that the majority of cases of sexual misconduct are he said / she said or that the evidence has not been preserved properly, making it difficult for the woman to successfully prove her case. ”In her lawsuit, filed with the Los Angeles Superior Court and reported for the first time by Law360, Doe – who is represented by the famous lawyer Lisa Bloom – says that it was Guess’s decision to keep Marciano close to her that led to the attack. His continued position at the company gave him access to her and other models and allowed Marciano “to be alone with her in her rape room on the pretext of advancing her modeling career and sexually assaulting her there, leaving her emotionally devastated and suicidal “alleged. Guess, his lawyers and Marciano’s lawyers did not respond to requests for comment. The plaintiff’s complaint against Marciano and Guess contains more than a dozen complaints, including sexual assault, sexual harassment, infliction of emotional suffering and false imprisonment. a former Guess model, describes how Marciano allegedly lured her to an empty apartment in February 2020 with the promise of career opportunities. It was there, she says, that Marciano forced her to have oral sex with him. After the assault, on Doe’s complaint, Marciano promised her more Guess model shows and gave her a $ 1,000 Guess gift card. “It is terrible that Guess has brought Marciano back and that he continues to have unrestricted access to models, with the ability to make or break their careers,” Bloom told The Daily Beast. “Marciano should have been fired in 2009, when the first complaint was made. He should have been fired in 2018, when six more women went on record with serious allegations of sexual harassment and assault. He must be fired now. Instead, it is my client who is unemployed, destroyed, after his claim against him. Doe also alleges that she filed a complaint with Guess’ human resources department in September 2020, in which she filed additional allegations that Marciano made numerous unwanted sexual advances over her over the years, including a case of groping. After receiving the complaint, Doe says, the company, Marciano and her modeling agency met without her to discuss the charges and offered to give her higher-paid modeling jobs if she decided not to pursue the lawsuit. After she refused to accept the offer, she says that her modeling agency has stopped hiring her. Guess, however, would later tell Doe that they found no evidence of sexual harassment or assault, although they did not interview her. She claims that they offered her more money and shows at the same meeting. “I suffered an unbearable pain that I desperately want to protect other women from feeling too,” she said in a statement to The Daily Beast. “I hope that when sharing my story, I will be the last.” Following Kate Upton’s allegations, Paul Marciano SurfaceDoe of New Sex Claims Against Guess also told The Daily Beast that he filed the lawsuit because of “the company’s disrespect for my experience and pain left me even more alone and scared”, adding who “continually turned a blind eye to Paul Marciano’s actions and accusations over the years”. She concluded: “I want him to be arrested and, finally, face the consequences for these ongoing allegations. I would love to see you removed from Guess, and I would love for the company that you have always claimed to be about women’s empowerment to finally start empowering women. ”Marciano’s reputation as an alleged sexual predator, however, is hardly a secret in the fashion world. In addition to previous allegations that led to direct deals, many in the business said they kept their models away from him for fear of potential abuse and aggression. “We prevented many of our younger girls from working with him,” a New York-based model agent told The Daily Beast. “Just to clarify, we still have girls working with him, but they are older, and we give them advance notice of his reputation.” The agent continued: “Younger girls may not be able to behave as well as older ones. Fortunately, he lost some of his power. I know that part of his power has been stripped, but he is still an owner. “A Los Angeles photographer also told The Daily Beast that Marciano” does it with everyone “, adding that Guess’s founder” has a recruitment system “who know” two girls who have had sex with him through recruitment “. The New York agent, meanwhile, went so far as to compare Marciano to the most infamous figure in the #MeToo movement, predicting a similar drop to the previous film mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was sentenced to 23 years in prison for rape and assault. “It will happen to Paul eventually,” said the agent. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get our top news in your inbox every day. Subscribe now! Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper into the stories that matter to you. To know more.