A judge has removed Kat Von D as a defendant in a lawsuit brought by the ex-manager of Von D’s now-shuttered High Voltage Tattoo store in West Hollywood who alleged she was wrongfully fired in 2020 for expressing concerns about her boss’ alleged disregard for coronavirus mandates and health concerns.
After hearing arguments Thursday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kevin C. Brazile agreed with Von D’s lawyers that there were no triable issues in plaintiff Stephanie Davidson’s case against the tattoo artist. The same judge in 2022 had denied Von D’s motion to compel arbitration of the case, clearing the path at the time for a jury to decide the plaintiff’s claims. Davidson sued Von D and High Voltage Tattoo in January of that year.
In his ruling, the judge found that Von D is not the “alter ego” of High Voltage Tattoo and therefore cannot be found liable for the one cause of action Davidson alleged against Von D for retaliation.
“Plaintiff’s evidence primarily indicates that (Von D) made most or all financial, management, and personnel decisions,” Brazile wrote. “This is not alone exceptional as (Von D) is apparently the only principal of (High Voltage Tattoo) and corporations have to act through individuals. Without more, the evidence shows mannerisms consistent with those of a small business.”
Davidson had worked as Von D’s personal assistant when she was employed by Wonderland Inc., then she left for other jobs before being rehired by the tattoo artist as HVT’s general manager, according to the plaintiff’s court papers. Davidson’s primary duties in her new job consisted of general shop maintenance, answering phone calls and inquiries, booking and coordinating walk-in appointments, setting up tattoo stations, ordering and organizing inventory, handling client payments and pay-outs at the end of the day, and running the shop’s social media account, according to her court papers.
Von D’s real name is Katherine Von Drachenberg and she is the former longtime girlfriend of Long Beach-born 56-year-old reality television personality Jesse James, the founder of West Coast Choppers.
High Voltage Tattoo closed in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. When California began allowing the reopening of nonessential personal care businesses three months later, Davidson wanted to ensure everyone’s safety, the suit states. But her concerns were quickly dismissed by Von D, who “made it clear to Ms. Davidson and other employees that she refused to enforce any of the mandate rules, including the use of face coverings, and continued to go as far as dismissing the COVID-19 pandemic as a whole,” according to the complaint.
Von D asked one employee who wore a mask, “You’re going to wear a maxi pad on your face?” and also told another worker that the person’s choice to don a face covering was influenced by “a state of fear based on mainstream media narrative,” the suit states.
Davidson, who is diabetic, felt it was unsafe to return to work after the June 2020 reopening and unsuccessfully tried to reason with Von D regarding her “extremist views on COVID-19 safety precautions,” the suit states. The plaintiff later conveyed her health concerns about High Voltage Tattoo to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office, the suit states.
Despite a second shutdown order announced in July 2020 for indoor personal care establishments, High Voltage Tattoo “remained illegally open,” the suit states. That same month, Von D retaliated against Davidson by firing her because she disclosed information to authorities about High Voltage Tattoo’s alleged noncompliance with local, state or federal health rules, the suit alleges.
Von D also failed to pay Davidson a minimum hourly wage or pay her the overtime rate, the suit alleges.
In October 2021, Von D, now 43, announced she was closing High Voltage Tattoo, which was featured on the TLC reality show “LA Ink,” and moving with her family to Indiana.