Nirvana ‘Nevermind’ Album Cover Child Porn Lawsuit Revived By Federal Judge – Update

deadline.com:

UPDATED with new ruling: A federal appeals court today revived a previously-dismissed lawsuit for alleged child sexual exploitation brought by the Los Angeles man pictured as a naked infant over 30 years ago on the cover of the landmark Nirvana album Nevermind.Spencer Elden sought personal injury damages from the now-defunct group’s company, various record companies and art directors on the grounds that he was a victim of child pornography when, as a 4-month-old baby, he was photographed naked in a pool for the cover of the multimillion-selling 1991 album.

The district court dismissed the action last year as barred by the 10-year statute of limitations. A panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal and sent the case back to Los Angeles federal court for further proceedings, finding that because each republication of the cover photo may constitute a new personal injury, the plaintiff’s complaint was not barred by the statute of limitations. “The album cover art has become iconic and highly recognizable,” Judge Sandra S.

Ikuta, who was nominated to the court by President George W. Bush, wrote for the panel. “It has been displayed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York and has been frequently referenced, imitated and parodied.

Commentators have opined that the naked infant reaching for a dollar symbolizes the ills of a capitalistic society.”Elden’s lawsuit argued that the cover image suggests a “sex worker grabbing for a dollar bill.”PREVIOUSLY on Sep.