NEVERMIND

Naked ‘Nirvana Baby’ Loses ‘Child Pornography’ Lawsuit Against Band

A federal judge tossed out Spencer Elden’s lawsuit with prejudice, saying it would be “futile” to give him yet another attempt to amend his complaint.

A federal judge in California tossed out the lawsuit accusing famed grunge band Nirvana of “child pornography” for featuring a naked baby on the cover of its groundbreaking 1991 album Nevermind. 31-year-old Spencer Elden, the so-called “Nirvana Baby,” has repeatedly attempted to sue the group for “commercial child sexual exploitation”—despite previously reenacting the image for money as an adult and selling self-autographed copies of the album. U.S. District Judge Fernando M. Olguin ruled on Friday that Elden’s complaint was filed after the 10-year statute of limitations had expired, adding that it would be “dismissed without leave to amend.” In his original case filed last year, Elden alleged that he suffered “extreme and permanent emotional distress” and “lifelong damages” because the band depicted him as a “sex worker” by dangling a dollar in front of his infant self, demanding $1.5 million in damages. That case was tossed out by Olguin in January, but “with leave to amend.” Elden’s lawyers say they plan to appeal the judge’s ruling, who said “the court is persuaded that it would be futile to afford plaintiff a fourth opportunity to file an amended complaint.”