Pick a Day

Music History Events: Legal Issues

June 1, 2003 Slipknot bass player Paul Gray is arrested after colliding with another car in his hometown of Des Moines, Iowa. Gray, who dies from an overdose on May 24, 2010, is charged with possession of marijuana, cocaine and drug paraphernalia, as well drunk-driving.

May 21, 2003 Ike Turner is refused entry into Japan because of a past drug conviction.

May 20, 2003 South Carolina's parole board pardons James Brown of all past offenses committed in the state, even the felonies, spurring James to spontaneously sing "God Bless America" at the conclusion of the hearing.

May 13, 2003 Tommy Chong of Cheech & Chong pleads guilty to selling drug paraphernalia over the Internet.

May 13, 2003 Michael Jackson sues Motown records for alleged nonpayment of Jackson 5 royalties and unauthorized usage of the group's music in TV commercials.

April 25, 2003 The parents of the late Doors frontman, Jim Morrison, sue the remaining members for touring with a new singer as "The Doors 21st Century" using the band's image and logo.

April 21, 2003 EMI and Universal Music sue the file-sharing service Napster for copyright violations.

January 15, 2003 In Albuquerque, New Mexico, Lou Rawls is arrested on one count of battery against his girlfriend.

January 13, 2003 British police arrest The Who guitarist Pete Townshend as part of their "Operation Ore" sting operation to crack down on child pornography. Townshend admits to having indecent images of children, but insists that he was doing research for an upcoming book dealing with his own experience with sexual abuse. He is placed on the sex offenders' register for five years.

December 30, 2002 After being pulled over for driving erratically, Diana Ross is arrested in Tucson, Arizona, for driving under the influence, with a blood alcohol level reportedly twice the legal limit. She fails all sobriety tests at the scene, reportedly falling over when asked to walk a straight line. She is charged with three misdemeanor DUIs.

December 28, 2002 Cambodia deports Gary Glitter and extradites him back to the UK to face a conviction in London on child pornography charges.

November 22, 2002 Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger of The Doors announce plans to re-form with The Cult lead singer, Ian Astbury, and The Police drummer, Stewart Copeland. They initially tour as "The Doors of the 21st Century," but a lawsuit by original drummer, John Densmore (who declined to tour citing hearing loss), forces them to stop using the "Doors" moniker. They change their name to "Riders on the Storm" as a result of the litigation.

November 20, 2002 Stevie Wonder threatens to sue his mother, Lula Hardaway, for a passage in her new autobiography where she claims Stevie lost his virginity to a prostitute. The story is deleted from future copies.

November 18, 2002 Bill Wyman, former Rolling Stones bassist, sends a cease-and-desist letter to a writer for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution bearing the same name, which the writer was born under in 1961, on grounds that it violates the copyright of the bassist Wyman, who legally took the name at age 28 in 1964. No lawsuit is ever filed.

October 23, 2002 Johnnie Johnson, who is the "Johnny" in "Johnny B. Goode" and Chuck Berry's longtime pianist, loses his lawsuit against Berry in which he claims he co-wrote many of the rock pioneer's hits.

October 20, 2002 A man identifying himself as Kid Rock's personal assistant is charged with felony and misdemeanor drug possession after a traffic stop on Rock's tour bus on the Florida Turnpike. Officers find a small amount of cocaine, two marijuana cigarettes, a glass pipe, and rolling papers on Kevin J. McMahon's person and in his luggage. He is released from jail on $16,000 bond.

August 26, 2002 Herman's Hermits original lead singer Peter Noone files an unsuccessful lawsuit against the group's drummer Barry Whitwam, attempting to block him from touring with new musicians under the group name.

May 13, 2002 Dionne Warwick is arrested at Miami International Airport for possession of marijuana when screeners find 11 marijuana cigarettes inside a lipstick container. Charges are dropped after she does an anti-drug public service announcement.

December 14, 2001 Billy Preston pleads guilty to insurance fraud in a Los Angeles court and agrees to testify against six other defendants in the same case.

November 28, 2001 Aretha Franklin sues the tabloid Star magazine for $50 million over a December 2000 article titled "Aretha Franklin Drinking Herself into Grave."

November 21, 2001 Jonathan King is sentenced to seven years in prison for a series of sexual assaults on teenage boys between 1982 and 1987.

November 7, 2001 Singer Rod Lauren is accused of stabbing his actress wife Nida Blanca to death in their native Philippines, but flees the country before he can stand trial.

October 29, 2001 Musician/poet Gil Scott-Heron is sentenced to 1-3 years in state prison in a New York court, after failing to appear at an Oct. 1 hearing regarding the mandatory drug rehabilitation required by his plea bargain on an earlier drug possession charge.

October 19, 2001 Luciano Pavarotti is acquitted of tax evasion in a trial in his home town of Modena, Italy. The opera star, who was accused of owing the government $18 million for income earned from 1989-95, faced a nominal 18-month prison sentence.

September 27, 2001 Singer Jonathan King, best known for his 1965 hit "Everyone's Gone To The Moon," is found guilty of molesting several young boys and sentenced to seven years in prison.

July 30, 2001 Performing at OzzFest in Clarkston, Michigan, a thong-clad Marilyn Manson wraps his legs around the head of a 26-year-old security guard and grinds into him. The guard sues, claiming his head was "completely engulfed" in Manson's groin.More

July 25, 2001 The Doors' John Densmore, Bonnie Raitt, and others are arrested in Itasca, Illinois, for demonstrating against a company which they claim destroys the rainforest.

June 1, 2001 Rapper Jamal "Shyne" Barrow is sentenced in a Manhattan court to 10 years in prison for his part in a 1999 nightclub shooting.

May 8, 2001 The road manager for Insane Clown Posse is arrested at an Omaha show for attacking an Eminem supporter who was tossing M&M candies on stage to taunt ICP about their Detroit rival.

March 7, 2001 Ed Townshend, singer/songwriter of the 1957 hit "For Your Love," sues the R&B group K-Ci and JoJo, claiming they used his song in their recent hit "Just For Your Love."