Slayer, Record Company Sued
Jan. 24 -- Death-metal act Slayer and its label, Sony-financed American Recordings, are defending themselves in court today in San Luis Obispo, Calif., against a suit filed by the parents of Elyse Pahler, a 15-year-old girl who was tortured, raped and killed in 1995.
The suit was originally filed in 1996, after Pahler's body was found, and one of the three killers said that they were partially inspired by the music of Slayer.
The lawsuit was put on hold until the trial for the three teenage suspects, who eventually pleaded guilty, was finished. Now that they are in prison, the Pahlers want to hold the band and record company partially responsible, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Marketing Plan Questioned
Since such suits are routinely dismissed on First Amendment grounds, the Pahlers' approach is slightly different — the suit claims the defendants violated the California business and professions code and accuses them of unlawfully marketing and distributing "harmful" and "obscene" products to minors.
This argument is in line with a Federal Trade Commission study from the fall that accused entertainment conglomerates of targeting children with violent music, movies, and video games.
In addition, the FTC and the surgeon general released a report last week on youth violence, saying that they "found strong evidence that exposure to violence in the media can increase children's aggressive behavior."
Similar Cases Failed
According to the suit, Slayer's songs serve as an instruction manual for disturbed adolescent fans, introducing them to violence, devil worship, human sacrifice and necrophilia.
The lawsuit points to the lyrics of such songs as "Altar of Sacrifice," "Postmortem," "Serenity in Murder," "Tormentor," and "Necrophiliac," arguing that these and other materials marketed by the band and its record company incited the "sacrificial murder" of the couple's daughter.
The band and Sony — which did not comment on the case — will argue their First Amendment rights and point out that courts have consistently ruled for artistic expression, tossing out product-liability suits blaming youth suicides on albums by heavy metal acts Judas Priest and Ozzy Osbourne.
