Marvin Gaye’s adopted son is no longer facing a possible default judgment in a lawsuit filed by a woman who alleges she was injured while trying to calm a dispute between Gaye and his wife at his home in 2023.
The woman is identified only as Jane Doe in the Van Nuys Superior Court lawsuit brought against Marvin Gaye III that alleges assault, battery, intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, negligence, false imprisonment, harassment and trespass to property.
On Thursday, Judge Huey P. Cotton granted Gaye III’s unopposed motion to set side an entry of default that could have let to a judgment against Gaye III. The defendant contended he was never served with the complaint. Gaye III turned 60 on Friday.
In his court papers, Gaye III’s attorneys deny Doe’s allegations and he cites multiple defenses on behalf of his client, including that Doe gave express or complied consent to any of Gaye III’s alleged actions concerning her.
According to the suit, Doe was called to Gaye’s home on Jan. 12, 2023, to mediate a dispute between Gaye and his now former wife, Wendy Gaye.
“Plaintiff’s intent was solely to assist in diffusing the situation,” the suit filed Dec. 26 states.
But when Doe arrived, events escalated violently and Gaye III allegedly pointed a gun at Doe and Wendy Gaye and threatened their lives, the suit states.
Doe fled “in fear for her life” and on subsequent days Gaye III cut the brakes on her car and had people surveil her home, the latter of which prompted Doe’s son to relocate in fear for his safety, according to the suit.
Gaye also showed up without permission at a Father’s Day event in 2022, worsening Doe’s emotional trauma and fear, the suit further alleges.
Doe has suffered severe emotional distress, including anxiety, depression, panic attacks and insomnia, the suit states. She also has incurred medical expenses and involuntarily lost up to 30 pounds, according to the suit.
Doe also says she needs security for family events and lives in constant fear for herself and her family.
Gaye III was adopted by Marvin Gaye and Anna Gordy shortly after his birth in November 1965.
Marvin Gaye was a legendary soul singer who was shot and killed by his father at age 44 at their Los Angeles home in April 1984.