LOS ANGELES — The judge overseeing Steven Tyler’s sexual assault lawsuit recused herself Tuesday, two weeks before the trial was scheduled to begin.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Patricia A. Young stepped down after discussing the case with another judge who had previously been dismissed from the trial, according to Rolling Stone. Young notified both legal teams once she realized the other judge’s prior involvement. The trial had been set for Sept. 28.
Since neither side could agree on how to proceed, Young announced her decision to disqualify herself in court.
“As a result of the parties not waiving, I will officially disqualify,” Young said from the bench. “Once I discovered the basis for my disqualification, I did not take any further action, so anything that was an open question as of last Friday … I have not ruled on those, and I will not rule on those.”
The trial’s upcoming hearing was automatically withdrawn. A new judge has not been assigned, and a new trial date has not been set.
Plaintiff Julia Misley filed the lawsuit in 2022, alleging Tyler sexually assaulted her starting in 1973 when she was a minor and that the abuse continued until she turned 25. Tyler, the Aerosmith frontman, denied the allegations and said they had a consensual relationship when they lived together in Boston. At the time, the age of consent in Massachusetts was 16.
Tyler’s attorneys succeeded in getting much of the original suit dismissed, but Misley’s legal team argued that incidents in Oregon, Washington and California should move forward because the age of consent in those states was 18. Young previously ruled that only the California-based charges would go to trial.
Misley accused Tyler of grooming her for years and becoming her legal guardian. Tyler addressed the relationship in his 2011 autobiography, “Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?” He wrote that he almost “took a teen bride” and that Misley’s parents signed papers granting him custody so he could take her out of state.
The lawsuit remains pending as the court waits for a new judge and trial date.