Woman's lawsuits say sci-fi author Neil Gaiman repeatedly sexually assaulted her

Neil Gaiman arrives at the Art of Elysium Heaven Gala on Jan. 6, 2024, at The Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)

MADISON, Wis. — A woman from New Zealand has filed three civil lawsuits against best-selling British author Neil Gaiman and his wife, accusing Gaiman of repeatedly sexually assaulting her while she was working as the couple’s babysitter and nanny.

Scarlett Pavlovich filed the lawsuits in federal court in Wisconsin, Massachusetts and New York on Monday.

The Associated Press doesn’t identify people who say they have been sexually assaulted unless they publicly identify themselves. Pavlovich identified herself in an interview with New York Magazine, which published an article in January detailing allegations of assault, abuse and coercion leveled by eight women.

Pavlovich alleges in the lawsuits that she was homeless and living on a beach when she met Palmer in Auckland, New Zealand, in 2020. Pavlovich was 22 years old at the time.

According to the lawsuits, Gaiman’s wife, Amanda Palmer, invited Pavlovich to the couple’s home on Waiheke Island. Pavlovich began running errands for the couple, babysitting their son and helping with chores, eventually becoming the couple’s nanny.

Gaiman first sexually assaulted her the night they met in February 2022, according to the lawsuits. The assaults continued but she kept working for the couple because she was broke and homeless and Gaiman had told her he would help her writing career, according to the lawsuits.

When she told Palmer about the assaults, Palmer told her that more than a dozen women had told her in the past that Gaiman had sexually abused them, according to the lawsuits.

The assaults didn’t stop until Pavlovich told Palmer she was going to kill herself, the lawsuits said. She left the family and became homeless again, although the documents say Gaiman eventually paid her for her work caring for the couple’s child and helped cover her rent for a few months.

Palmer knew of Gaiman’s sexual desires and presented Pavalovich to him knowing he would assault her, according the lawsuits. Pavlovich alleges Gaiman and Palmer violated federal human trafficking prohibitions and seeks at least US$7 million in damages.

After the New York Magazine article was published, Gaiman released a statement in January denying he had ever engaged in non-consensual sex. The allegations of four of the women were previously broadcast in July in a Tortoise Media podcast.

“I’m far from a perfect person, but I have never engaged in non-consensual sexual activity with anyone. Ever,” Gaiman posted on the social media platform Tumblr.

Representatives for Gaiman and Palmer did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday and online court records did not list attorneys representing them in the suits. Pavlovich’s attorneys stated in the filings that Gaiman, author of such bestsellers as “Coraline” and “The Sandman” series, is a resident of Menomonie, Wisconsin. But they’re unsure if Palmer resides in Massachusetts or New York.

Pavlovich told New York Magazine that she filed a police report in January 2023 accusing Gaiman of sexual assault. Police have not confirmed whether Gaiman was ever under investigation.

Gaiman has worked with numerous publishers over the years. Two of them, HarperCollins and W.W. Norton, have said they have no plans to release his books in the future. Others, including Bloomsbury, have so far declined comment.

Dark Horse Comics announced in January that it would no longer release its illustrated series based on Gaiman’s novel, “Anansi Boys.” The seventh of eight editions was released earlier that month.

Disney has paused a planned adaptation of Gaiman’s “The Graveyard Book,” while Netflix is still scheduled to release a second season based on “The Sandman.”

Todd Richmond, The Associated Press