This article contains descriptions of allegations of sexual assault.
Shangela, also known as Darius Jeremy “DJ” Pierce, 43, has been one of those lucky few drag queens who has achieved crossover success, booking roles on TV, film, and formerly cohosting the reality series We’re Here. But reports of Pierce supposedly preying on others started emerging in 2023 — and now a new report outlines the harrowing details of several other reported incidents.
On March 18, Rolling Stone published an in-depth investigation of the allegations against Pierce, interviewing five sources who claim that Pierce sexually assaulted them or tried to. All of the alleged victims described similar circumstances surrounding the alleged assaults. They also spoke out about anti-drag legislation and told Rolling Stone they anticipated their allegations could be used as a “misguided cudgel for conservative censorship.” Read on for more details on the allegations, when they occurred, and how Shangela has responded.
Four people told Rolling Stone that Pierce had assaulted them or attempted to have sex with them when they were too inebriated to consent, with an additional person alleging that Pierce attempted to penetrate them anally even as they verbally rejected him. All five people were between the ages of 18 and 23 when the alleged assaults occurred. Rolling Stone reports that these incidents reportedly occurred between 2012 and 2018, in Louisiana, Texas, California, and the U.K.
One source, Helmer, was 20 when the assault allegedly took place in 2017. Rolling Stone reports that he was working at a bar in Los Angeles when he and the then 36-year-old Pierce exchanged numbers and social media accounts. According to a police report obtained by Rolling Stone, Pierce bought him a mojito the following night, and Helmer didn’t “have any recollection of the events that occurred after he drank the Mojito.” Helmer told police that he woke up “completely naked on a bed and believed to be at Pierce’s residence.” Pierce told him that they had had sex with “another guy involved,” someone Pierce said that Helmer “brought in.” However, Helmer didn't seem to know who it was and asked Pierce who the “other guy” was. Pierce answered that he didn't know “but you were really into it."
Another alleged victim, Edgar Ramirez, told Rolling Stone that Pierce assaulted him in 2018 in Texas after a night out. The magazine noted that, unlike other accusers, Ramirez said he provided his own drinks throughout the night. He says that Pierce shoved him to the floor of a closet and tried to penetrate him, as Ramirez described in a post on a pop culture forum, per Rolling Stone. “I’m very confident I was clear with my ‘nos.’ I was declining advances,” Ramirez told Rolling Stone. “He still kept trying anyway.”
The other three accounts follow a similar story to Helmer’s: Pierce would provide the alleged victims with drinks and/or encourage them to drink, and then would initiate sexual contact even though the sources were too inebriated to consent.
Rolling Stone also noted that neither Drag Race nor RuPaul himself is implicated in the investigation.
Yes. In May 2023, Daniel McGarrigle, a production assistant on We’re Here, filed a suit against Pierce. In the suit, McGarrigle accused Pierce of raping him after a crew party. The details of this alleged instance were similar to the pattern outlined in Rolling Stone’s reporting; in an interview with the Los Angeles Times, McGarrigle said that Pierce had pressured him to drink heavily, then took him back to his hotel room and attempted to penetrate him.
According to Deadline, both parties attended mediation on January 16, and filed joint court papers to dismiss the case in February. The details of the settlement have not been made public.
Pierce is being represented by Andrew Brettler, a partner at the Los Angeles boutique litigation firm Lavely & Singer. He’s become known for representing clients accused of sexual assault, including Armie Hammer and Chris Noth.
Through a letter from his legal counsel to Rolling Stone, Pierce “adamantly denies ever engaging in nonconsensual sex.” The letter additionally states that the allegations are “false and unsupported by any evidence or reliable witness testimony.” However, Rolling Stone notes that while Pierce has maintained his innocence, he did admit to meeting with four of the sources Rolling Stone interviewed on the dates of the alleged assault, though he told the magazine that he did not remember the fifth accuser.
Pierce also initially told Rolling Stone that “any accusers coming forward were motivated by McGarrigle in an attempt to strengthen his civil lawsuit,” but one alleged victim posted about his allegations online in 2018, years before McGarrigle came forward.
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