Anti-Flag Vocalist Justin Sane Being Sued for Sexual Assault
A lawsuit has been filed against Anti-Flag frontman Justin Sane for an alleged sexual assault involving a female fan. This comes months after the band broke up following multiple sexual assault allegations began coming to light.
According to a report by Rolling Stone, Kristina Sarhadi, who is a holistic therapist and health coach from New York, legally named Sane, aka Justin Geever, in a lawsuit filed in her home state. The suit also names the band’s distribution company ad band members Patrick Bollinger (Pat Thetic), Chris Head, and Chris Barker (Chris No. 2).
According to her suit, Sarhadi says that Geever used his status with Anti-Flag to manipulate and harm herself and other young women. While he advocated publicly for women’s rights, she claims he did not uphold these beliefs behind closed doors.
“Justin Geever used his platform as a celebrated, self-proclaimed ‘punk rock star’ to groom and lure vulnerable girls into feeling safe in his presence. While he sang about protecting women and standing up to abusers, it appears he was hiding an addiction to power and control, harming countless women who have been unable to speak up before now. Today I hope to encourage his survivors, and survivors of other predators in the music industry, to feel hope again.”
She initially shared this info on the podcast Enough this past July, talking about an encounter with Geever in October 2010 that she described as violent. Following her revelation, the band disbanded immediately after 35 years in punk, even going so far to delete their socials. Twelve other women have come forward against Geever, claiming he has been perpetrating this abuse since the ’90s.
The lawsuit also alleges that other band members enabled this behavior and put fans in danger. Despite the long gap in time from the incident to the lawsuit’s filing, it’s permissible under New York state legislation called New York’s Adult Survivors Act, which allows victims to file sexual assault lawsuits any time, effectively ending the statute of limitations on such incidents.
Sarhadi’s attorney, Karen Barth Menzies, said she was proud of her client for taking steps to what they believe will be justice.
“The decision to file a lawsuit takes great courage and is often not possible for so many survivors of sexual assault. Accountability is only attainable when survivors stand up for themselves and each other.”
Dr. Ann Olivarius, another one of Sarhadi’s legal representatives, said she expects things to change in music as more and more lawsuits come to light.
“I predict that in five years, the music industry will be viewed the same way as the Catholic Church or the Boy Scouts—a powerful force that also enabled and shielded sexual predators for decades. Drugs, sex, and rock ‘n’ roll was a reality that meant a lot of young women got abused. The bands had handlers who made it all happen and executives who covered it all up because so much money depended on it.”
This is not a new problem in rock, metal, or punk, as the #MeToo movement has been highlighting for years now.
