Smokey Robinson, the famous Motown artist and regular Las Vegas performer, faces allegations of sexual assault and false imprisonment in a lawsuit filed on Tuesday by four unidentified women who were once his housekeepers. 

The legal action demands $50 million in compensation for the numerous instances when Robinson, 85, purportedly assaulted each of them during their employment at his estates in Las Vegas and in Chatsworth and Ventura County, California, from 2006 to 2024. 

The suit also claims that Frances Robinson, Smokey’s wife of 25 years, perpetuated a “hostile work environment” by turning a blind eye when she had “full knowledge of his prior acts of sexual misconduct, having settled cases with other women that suffered and experienced similar sexual assaults perpetuated by him.”

“Our four clients have a common thread,” John Harris, an attorney for the women, said at a news conference in LA, where they filed the suit. “They’re Hispanic women who were employed as housekeepers by the Robinsons, earning below minimum wage.”

According to the lawsuit, each woman worked 10-hour shifts for below minimum wage without overtime pay, and three of them were afraid to report Robinson to authorities due to their immigration status. 

“As low-wage workers in vulnerable positions, they lacked the resources and options necessary to protect themselves from sexual assaults throughout their tenure as employees for the Robinsons,” Harris claimed.

The Specifics 

Jane Doe 1, employed by the Robinsons from January 2023 to February 2024, alleges she was attacked at least seven times during her weekend shifts in Chatsworth, a Los Angeles suburb. The attacks occurred after Robinson came back from taking his wife to the nail salon, according to the lawsuit. 

Jane Doe 2 was employed by the Robinsons from May 2014 until February 2020 and claimed to have been sexually assaulted by the singer on at least 23 occasions. Jane Doe 3, employed by the Robinsons from February 2012 until April 2024, indicated that it occurred at least 20 times. Jane Doe 4, who was employed by the couple from October 2006 to April 2024, alleged that Robinson sexually assaulted her several times at his residences in Las Vegas, Chatsworth, and Ventura County. 

It remains uncertain if the lawsuit will lead to criminal charges, which provide much more explicit details about the claims made by each woman. 

Robinson is most famous for his soul classics from the 1960s with the Miracles, such as “Tracks of My Tears,” “Shop Around,” and “I Second That Emotion.” The Beatles acknowledged him as one of their greatest influences in songwriting. 

Robinson, who most recently took the stage in Las Vegas at the Venetian Theatre on April 5, is now on tour and set to perform on Friday in Mississippi.