Why Horatio Sanz’s Accuser Is Seeking To Add Jimmy Fallon As A Defendant In Sexual Assault Lawsuit
Fallon allegedly emailed her when she was 15.
Joe Seer / DFree / Shutterstock Attorneys representing the woman who accused Horatio Sanz of grooming and sexually assaulting her as a teenager are hoping to add Jimmy Fallon as a defendant in a lawsuit connected to the allegations.
According to a press release from Crumellier, the legal firm representing the alleged victim, a motion for leave to file a proposed Amended Complaint that adds Fallon, was filed on Tuesday, August 23 in New York State Supreme Court.
The filing also requests that SNL alum Tracy Morgan and SNL producer Lorne Michaels be added as individual defendants.
The proposed amended complaint will maintain allegations made by Jane Doe against Sanz last year.
Fallon was previously mentioned in the lawsuit that detailed the allegations of sexual assault but this filing will be the first attempt to have the talk show hosted listed as a defendant.
Why was Jimmy Fallon named in the sexual assault lawsuit against Horatio Sanz?
Jane Doe’s proposed amended complaint accuses Fallon of contributing to an environment that made it easy for Sanz to groom his alleged victim.
“Michaels fostered a predatory environment at SNL in which visibly underage teenage girls were a regular presence at SNL’s legendary ‘after-parties’ and ‘after-after parties,’ where alcohol was provided to them by NBC,” a press release announcing the proposed amendment states.
“Fallon and Morgan were willing participants in this disturbing culture that ultimately led Jane to be sexually assaulted by Sanz at an SNL party with numerous witnesses present.”
The filing notes that Fallon and other former SNL cast members have frequently boasted about these infamous after-parties.
Jimmy Fallon emailed Horatio Sanz’s alleged victim, according to the filing.
According to the proposed amended complaint, which has been viewed by YourTango, Fallon emailed the teenage fan after a fan website she ran was hacked in January 2000.
“I’m sorry it happened to a cool girl like yourself,” the alleged email reads, in part.
Jane Doe and Sanz first met in October of 2000 after she waited outside an SNL rehearsal.
She was 15 while Sanz was 31.
Upon meeting Sanz again in the same location the following night, the comedian was allegedly “flirtatious and physically affectionate with 15-year-old Jane.”
“He kissed her cheek and rested his hands on the small of her back suggestively,” the filing states.
Jane Doe traveled to New York to meet Fallon, Sanz, and other SNL stars outside NBC studios on a number of other occasions from 2000 to 2001.
In 2001, the 16-year-old fan began attending SNL after-parties.
The filing alleges that the teen was supplied alcohol while partying with the stars of the show.
“Throughout the night, Jane had conversations with many people, including several NBC employees, to whom she mentioned that she was 16 years old,” the filing alleges.
The proposed amended complaint claims that Sanz would inappropriately interact with Jane Doe at these events, detailing one early incident.
“He grabbed her and put her on his lap, with his arm around her hips. For the remainder of the conversation, he kept her there, touching her hips and buttocks casually with his hands,” the filing alleges.
Horatio Sanz allegedly began grooming the teen over AOL Messenger.
In August 2001, Sanz allegedly instant messaged a teenage friend of Jane Doe’s on AOL Messenger, using the handle “Marblechomper."
She reached out to Sanz to confirm his identity, which he affirmed, adding, "Don’t tell anybody. Promise?”
They continued to exchange messages, with Sanz leaking information to her about upcoming “SNL” hosts and musical guests so she could post them on her site.
Sanz would allegedly message her regularly, turning the conversation to sex and asking her and her friend to send explicit images.
The filing details several other alleged encounters at SNL after-parties, claiming that Jane Doe would often consume alcohol with Fallon and Michaels.
It is also alleged that shortly after revealing that she was a junior in high school, Fallon asked Jane Doe for her phone number.
On April 20, 2002, Sanz allegedly instructed the now-17-year-old how to masturbate while speaking at another party.
Sanz allegedly sexually assaulted the teenager in front of witnesses at an SNL party.
On May 11, 2002, Sanz and Jane Doe allegedly “made out” while sitting on a couch in a Manhattan loft. Sanz allegedly groped the teenager, and “began rubbing Jane’s vagina over her clothing,” the filing claims.
He also allegedly removed her breast from her shirt while other party-goers, including Will Ferrell, Maya Rudolph, and more, looked on.
The filing states, “Two NBC employees approached Sanz, saying, ‘Are you f-cking serious?’. It was the only effort anybody made to stop the assault.”
After leaving the party, Sanz allegedly sexually assaulted Jane Doe in a taxi after she had passed out due to alcohol consumption.
She allegedly awoke to find that Sanz was digitally penetrating her without her consent.
Sanz allegedly confessed to the assault and grooming in 2019.
Throughout the rest of the girl's high school experience, she continued to attend cast parties and exchange explicit messages and pictures with Sanz.
She says she suffered from depression and shame, leading her to self-medicate with dissociative drugs and alcohol.
Sanz continued to send her sexual messages for several years until they stopped speaking.
In November 2019, having realized the extent of the alleged assault, Jane Doe texted Sanz to confront him.
received remorseful text messages from Sanz in which he said he was "very sorry," "very dumb," and a "wounded creep."
He also allegedly texted, "If you want to metoo me you have every right. Just believe me I'm not like that anymore."
Sanz denies the allegations.
Attorney Andrew Brettler denied the allegations on Sanz's behalf.
“However often she repeats her ludicrous allegations or tries to rope in other high-profile names to generate media attention, they will always be false."
He also claims in his statement that before the lawsuit was filed the girl demanded $7.5 million "in exchange for her silence," which Sanz and he refused to pay.
The unnamed woman is seeking unspecified damages and notes she's a victim of child sexual abuse who suffered psychological and emotional harm.
Megan Hatch is a writer at YourTango who covers pop culture, news and social justice topics.