We told you! Rikki Rockett cleared of rape charge

The following update has been posted at Poison drummer and Tabloid Baby pal Rikki Rockett's MySpace page:

"Poison drummer Rikki Rockett was exonerated of a felony rape charge filed in Mississippi stemming from a September 23, 2007 incident in which a Neshoba County, Mississippi woman claimed that Rockett had forcibly raped her. Rockett was not in Mississippi during September 2007. The Neshoba County District Attorney refused to prosecute the case after determining that Rockett was not the person who committed the alleged rape. The charges carry a potential life sentence. Rockett said, 'I want to sincerely thank my lawyers Barry Tarlow and Mi Kim for their commitment to my case and their terrific legal work that exonerated me of any wrongdoing.'

"The warrant, issued on December 18, 2007, sought the arrest and extradition of 'Rockett, Rikki A' a/k/a 'Minskosf, John' to Mississippi for 'strong arm rape.' News stories shortly disclosed the correct spelling of the name John Minskosf as 'John Minskoff.' Rockett has never used the Minskoff name. It is now believed that Minskoff used Rockett's name to convince the complaining witness to sleep with him.

"'I think it was a case where the woman and her husband unfortunately believed they could extort money from me and my band,' Rockett said, 'This is a gross example of people attempting to abuse the law for personal profit. They tried to subvert and make a mockery of the criminal justice system. It is abhorrent and disgraceful.' Rockett happily continued: 'It's nice to feel like I can have my life back now. I have a Poison tour to look forward to as well as a wedding to prepare for.'

"Rockett was arrested at LAX when he and his band mates arrived after performing at a large music festival in Wellington, New Zealand. Rockett said: 'I was exhausted from a 14-hour flight and then was hauled off to jail. The worst part was having to walk past my fiancé in handcuffs. She had no idea what was happening and neither did I! When I was finally told that I was arrested on charges of rape, I about passed out!' Rockett was booked, fingerprinted, and photographed at the Los Angeles county jail. 'The Police were as cool to me as they could be considering the circumstances. I was never disrespected by them during the time I was there. I want them to know that I appreciate that.'

"A flood of press coverage, both negative and positive, soon followed. 'I remain surprised that no member of the educated and savvy press ever googled the name "John Minskoff"! Had they done so, they would have found out that in 1996, John Minskoff claimed to have been involved with the rock band, White Snake, when he lured and kidnapped a 15-year-old girl in Reno, Nevada. Minskoff is a violent career criminal and felon and convicted perjurer with multiple convictions who has admitted to impersonating "rock stars" to sexually pursue women.'

"'I received undying support from my band, friends, and fans, but unfortunately, my detractors had a field day with the story. I look forward to serving the press who created defamatory remarks some healthy lawsuits!' Rockett went on to say, 'I also look forward to helping other people who have been falsely accused of committing heinous crimes. My lawyers, Barry Tarlow and Mi Kim, are helping me seek out organizations like Centurion Ministries to help if I can. This wonderful organization works to free innocent people in prison who have done serious time for crimes they did not commit.'"

(NOTE: Upon learning of Rikki's arrest in March, we wrote the post, Rikki Rockett is No Rapist, saying in part: "Rikki Rockett is no rapist. And we're not even going out on a limb here. We've known Rikki for more than a decade, and he's always been a principled, disciplined, straight-ahead character who's tried to use his fame for worthy causes and is aware that whether he likes it or not, he's a representative of them...")

Rikki Rockett is no rapist

Rikki Rockett is no rapist.

And we're not even going out on a limb here.

We've known Rikki for more than a decade, and he's always been a principled, disciplined, straight-ahead character who's tried to use his fame for worthy causes and is aware that whether he likes it or not, he's a representative of them. We first worked with him when we filmed his animal activism activities with Chris DeRose and his Last Chance for Animals investigative team for the Genesis Award-winning documentary, Hollywood Animal Crusaders. We've worked and kept in touch with him since, and got to know a guy who came from the most decadent scene rock 'n' roll had to offer, and yet grew to stand for integrity, compassion and trying to do the right thing. (We got to know his Poison bandmate Bret Michaels, too. They're both down-to-Earth guys from the hills of Pennsylvania who know where they come from).

Yeah, Rikki's an outrageous rock 'n' roller whose taken advantage of what that world has offered, but he's also a businessman, filmmaker and martial arts expert who's set world records with his homemade rockets (and was an inspiration for the movie October Sky), and has been accompanied by good women because in the past he's been known to be good to them.

But yeah, he's a rock 'n' roller and he's a character-- ask Gene Simmons about that-- and scandals, like the charges that he may be facing, come with the territory.

And though the undereducated, unsavory rentboys at the corporate porn-pushing gossip site TMZ.com (who should have been knocked off the Internet for their smarmy, unclever "Harey Bush" headline the other day) have been getting their usual jollies as they skip indiscriminately from their celebutard regulars and into the lives of grownups who fall into the category of "celebrity," the details that have emerged so far-- a hotel casino in Mississippi, a woman in his room, her trip to the police station three days later-- sound all too familiar, and we'd place an early bet on it being one of those stories in which the charges go away and someone is forced to write a fat check.

So as Rikki enters the tabloid windtunnel, check out this introduction to an interview with the late environmental/veggie magazine Satya:

As the lipstick-wearing kings of LA glam metal, Poison has embodied the sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll image for almost 20 years. With a string of smash hits including “Talk Dirty to Me,” “Unskinny Bop,” and “Every Rose Has Its Thorn,” Poison have made a career out of debauchery that’s lasted far longer than most of their fans’ Aqua Net hairspray, or for that matter, hair.

Yet, out of this decadent world comes Poison’s drummer Rikki Rockett, one of the most dedicated animal activists you’ll ever meet. Working with groups such as LA’s Last Chance For Animals, Rikki has used his celebrity to bring the message of compassion and animal rights into the world of rock ‘n’ roll and beyond. In the process he has smashed the stereotype of the narcissistic, self-absorbed rock star who cares little for the world or, for that matter, animals.

As an artist who is involved with music, painting and filmmaking (Rikki is currently producing and directing Hooligan, a documentary on motorcycle “Rocker” culture), Rikki is a virtual renaissance man. Whether he’s pounding his (non-animal) drum skins in Poison or trying to save the animals from being skinned, Rikki Rockett lives his passions as both an artist and an activist.