Runaways songwriter resolves lawsuit involving Kim Fowley, still pursuing former KROQ DJ

Runaways songwriter Kari Krome has reached a partial resolution in her lawsuit alleging she was groomed and sexually abused by late music producer Kim Fowley and former KROQ DJ Rodney Bingenheimer, beginning in 1974 when she was just 13 years old.

Krome has agreed to a conditional settlement with Fowley’s estate that would settle her claims that Fowley pulled her into his bedroom by her ankle and sexually assaulted her while other teenage members of The Runaways, the band she helped create, slept on the living room floor. She has said the abuse continued at least six more times over the following year, when she was between 14 and 15 years old and Fowley was at least 35.

Fowley, who died in 2015 at the age of 75, was also accused of sexual assault by fellow Runaways member Jackie Fuchs. In a Huffington Post article published after his death, Fuchs said the music manager raped her on a motel bed as others watched. She said she had taken a Quaalude and felt unable to move. Krome supported that account, saying she was only 14 at the time and did not know how to respond. She also shared her own allegations against Fowley in the same article.

An attorney representing Fowley’s estate did not respond to an email requesting comment on Tuesday. Specific terms of the conditional settlement have not been made public. A hearing to review the proposed agreement is scheduled for Jan. 14 in probate court.

Krome’s connected civil case against Bingenheimer, originally filed in December 2022, is still moving forward. She claims Bingenheimer used his influence as the operator of a well known Sunset Strip venue, Rodney Bingenheimer’s English Disco, to groom her. According to the lawsuit, he invited her to his apartment under the guise of friendship and sexually assaulted her for the first time when she was 13 and he was 28. She alleges the abuse continued “multiple times over many months.”

Bingenheimer, now 78, formally denied the allegations in a response filed in February 2024. He later lost his legal representation after failing to pay what court records describe as substantial legal fees and has since relied on Hollywood “fixer” Brad Herman as his representative. In an amended complaint submitted last month, Krome added Herman as a co defendant, alleging he worked with Bingenheimer to hide assets through a fraudulent transfer in order to shield money from a potential judgment.

Court filings from Krome allege Herman became trustee of Bingenheimer’s childhood home in Mountain View, California in 2024 and later used the property as collateral to secure a $500,000 loan. She further claims Herman sold the home in May 2025. Online property records list the sale price at nearly $1.7 million. Krome alleges the transfer and sale of the Santa Clara County property were carried out “with actual intent to hinder, delay, and or defraud” her as she seeks damages. Herman did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

According to the amended complaint, a month after the home sale, Herman told Krome’s attorney that Bingenheimer was too sick to attend a scheduled deposition. Weeks later, on July 9, 2025, Herman was seen accompanying Bingenheimer to a memorial service for Beach Boys icon Brian Wilson at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Less than a week after that appearance, Bingenheimer failed to show up for his rescheduled deposition and is now facing more than $4,000 in court ordered sanctions.

Krome’s attorney declined to comment Tuesday on the settlement with Fowley’s estate or on the amended filing that added Herman to the lawsuit. A jury trial covering the remaining claims is currently scheduled for March 30, 2026.

Despite the lawsuit pending for nearly three years, Bingenheimer has continued hosting a weekly radio show on SiriusXM’s Underground Garage channel. He previously hosted Rodney on the Roq on Los Angeles station KROQ from 1976 until the show ended in 2017.

Herman was previously featured in a favorable profile published by The Hollywood Reporter in 2022 but later became the subject of elder abuse allegations involving Marvel Comics creator Stan Lee and former Supremes singer Cindy Birdsong. After Lee’s death in 2018, his daughter J.C. Lee accused Herman of entering her father’s home while he was ill and forging his signature on loan documents. The dispute led to dueling defamation lawsuits. One judge dismissed Herman’s claim against Lee, calling her statements good faith opinion, while a court clerk later ordered Herman to pay Lee $100,436 in a default judgment after he missed court deadlines.

In the Birdsong matter, Herman was accused of elder abuse by her son Charles Hewlett. In a petition filed April 3, 2024, Hewlett claimed Herman took advantage of his mother while she was bedridden, reliant on a feeding tube, and unable to manage her finances or medical care. The filing alleged Herman withdrew large amounts of money from her accounts, including $131,114 in 2021 and another $101,293 in 2022. Herman denied the claims, calling them false and baseless. He later told The New York Times he was committed to ensuring Birdsong’s estate received everything it was owed.

In a filing submitted last November, Hewlett’s attorney said her client chose to withdraw the elder abuse petition after a year of investigation. She did not provide specific reasons, other than noting that avoiding a lengthy and costly trial resulted in significant savings for the conservatee’s estate.

In a separate interview with Rolling Stone in 2023, Go Go’s guitarist Jane Wiedlin also accused Bingenheimer of sexual assault. She said he isolated her in a dark room at the back of Rodney Bingenheimer’s English Disco around 1974 and repeatedly rubbed against her until he ejaculated on her clothes. Wiedlin said she was 15 at the time and that Bingenheimer would have been about 27. Bingenheimer did not respond to detailed questions sent by Rolling Stone.