‘Drag Race’ Star Shangela Sued for Sexual Assault in New Lawsuit
Less than a year after Rolling Stone’s investigation into former RuPaul’s Drag Race star Shangela uncovered sexual assault allegations from five accusers — along with a separate civil lawsuit settlement — the celebrity drag performer is facing their second sexual assault lawsuit.
Eric Poff, 35, who performed under adult film pseudonym Dakota Payne, filed a civil lawsuit against Darius Jeremy (“DJ”) Pierce, 44, in New York’s Supreme Court, according to documents obtained by Rolling Stone. Poff alleged Pierce sexually assaulted him while the two worked together on the revenge comedy film Hurricane Bianca 2 in October 2017.
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In the new filing, Poff, a production assistant on the film, claims he had “one or two drinks” with Pierce during a night out in New York. According to the complaint, Poff’s drink was “spiked” (the complaint does not indicate who he felt was responsible), and he blacked out thereafter. When he allegedly regained consciousness, he found himself in Pierce’s hotel room, and an unknown man was assaulting him.
“After [Poff] started to fade into consciousness, he was bent over a bed being anally penetrated without consent by John Doe with Pierce watching from the corner of the room,” the lawsuit states. “Pierce then anally penetrated [Poff] without his consent.” (The John Doe is also listed as a defendant in the lawsuit.) Poff claims that “after the sexual assault, Pierce sent [him] money via PayPal.”
Pierce’s attorney, Andrew Brettler, did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Poff’s lawsuit, but Pierce has consistently denied any allegations of sexual misconduct. Last year, Pierce called the March 2024 claims “false and unsupported by any evidence or reliable witness testimony.” Brettler emphasized that none of the accusations have resulted in criminal charges.
Since 2010, Pierce’s drag persona has been a central figure on the reality TV circuit. Shangela competed in the second and third seasons of Drag Race and quickly turned her success into a dazzling film and television résumé. Shangela received features in A Star Is Born, Broad City, and Glee and competed in Drag Race All-Stars 3 and Dancing With The Stars Season 31.
Pierce has advocated for LGBTQ rights, including co-hosting We’re Here, a television series bringing drag shows to small communities around America, for its first three seasons and performing as a headliner at dozens of charitable concerts. But offstage, the drag star has faced multiple sexual assault allegations in the past two years.
Poff’s complaint is the second civil lawsuit alleging sexual assault filed against Pierce. Daniel McGarrigle, a former production assistant during Pierce’s time on We’re Here, filed a lawsuit against the actor and their former employer, Buckingham Television. The lawsuit, filed in May 2023, initially alleged Pierce raped McGarrigle after a wrap party in Ruston, Louisiana. McGarrigle claimed he “threw up” from drinks provided by Pierce. Later that night, McGarrigle alleged he woke up in Pierce’s hotel room to the actor “rubbing his penis against his buttocks, attempting to insert himself into his anus.”
The parties settled the lawsuit out of court. Through Brettler, Pierce profusely denied the allegations. (Buckingham Television didn’t respond to requests for comment at the time. An HBO rep said in May 2023 that the production company “received a complaint late summer 2021 regarding an incident that was alleged to have occurred in early 2020. Buckingham and HBO take the safety and well-being of personnel on our shows very seriously, and Buckingham immediately launched an investigation. The investigation concluded that there was insufficient evidence to support these allegations.”)
Last March, Rolling Stone published an investigation into five allegations of sexual assault against Pierce. As part of that investigation, four people alleged that Pierce provided alcohol before they found themselves in Pierce’s hotel room or home. All four reported regaining consciousness at different points throughout the night, allegedly finding Pierce either sexually assaulting them or watching as an unknown man penetrated them when they were too drunk to consent. The fifth accuser alleged Pierce attempted to penetrate them despite rejecting advances. Poff’s lawsuit brings the total number of men who have accused Pierce of sexual assault to seven.
McGarrigle and a man named Helmer, one of the accusers in the original Rolling Stone article who declined to reveal his last name for work retaliation concerns, both filed police reports about their allegations. (Both men have not heard any updates from police regarding the investigations.)
All five sources in Rolling Stone’s investigation identify as queer and were either performers or regular attendees at drag shows. In a cultural moment where conservative states continue to pass anti-drag and anti-trans legislation, the sources described an agonizing decision to come forward. Their ultimate choice, they said, stemmed from a desire to hold Pierce – not the broader queer community – accountable for his alleged actions.
Poff has spoken out about his allegations twice on social media. In March, he posted an Instagram story with a link to Rolling Stone’s investigation, stating, “Maybe I should share my story too…” Six months later, in a three-minute Instagram video, he claimed he had run into Pierce at a WeHo restaurant and confronted the drag queen with their allegations.
“I let him know, ‘Hey, I know what you did, and you know what you did, and I believe all those boys’ stories,’” Poff said in the video. “He looked me in the eye, and he said, ‘I’m sorry you feel that way.’”
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