Suit Over Metal Band’s Lyrics Is Dismissed
A San Luis Obispo judge ruled late Monday that the parents of a slain teenage girl have failed to prove that violent music by the heavy metal band Slayer incited her murder.
Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Burke dismissed a lawsuit against Slayer by David and Lisanne Pahler, who argued that Slayer’s marketing of the music triggered the 1995 slaying of their daughter, Elyse Pahler. Three teenage boys pleaded guilty to Pahler’s murder and told investigators that they committed the crime after listening to Slayer’s music.
The girl’s parents sued Slayer and its Sony-affiliated American Recordings label in 1996, accusing them of unlawfully marketing and distributing “harmful” and “obscene” products to minors.
The ruling stemmed from a motion filed by Slayer and its record company to dismiss the suit on free-speech grounds. The judge agreed that Slayer’s music is protected under the 1st Amendment.
A lawyer for the parents said they will appeal the ruling.
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