By Kirk McCracken
A local artist will have to pay his adopted daughter and two other defendants $1.2 million after he sued for defamation and lost, involving allegations of sexual assault against him.
On Monday, Jan. 5, a judge ruled against Scott Taylor after he sued three people for defamation including his adopted daughter, Madelyn Taylor. After the allegations of sexual assault, The Scott Taylor Gallery on Cherry Street closed in 2023 after public outcry. The lawsuit was filed in 2022.
That same year, on social media, Madelyn posted a letter from DHS allegedly substantiating sexual abuse against Scott Taylor when she was a minor.
This week, a judge handed down the judgement for the daughter’s counterclaim for “abuse of process” and “assault and battery.” The judge ruled that Scott must pay the defendants $700,000 dollars for assault and battery, $500,000 dollars in punitive damages, and $5,000 for abuse of process.
