Conor Oberst rape accuser retracts accusations, apologizes

Last year, a woman calling herself Joanie Faircloth accused Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes of raping her after a 2003 concert via an online posting. Early this year, Oberst filed lawsuit against Faircloth accusing her of defamation, on the grounds that Faircloth's claims were false.

In a statement, signed today, Faircloth, whose real name is Joan Harris, issued an apology which stated that all her accusations were untrue. You can click read more for her full statement.

The statements I made and repeated online and elsewhere over the past six months accusing Conor Oberst of raping me are 100% false. I made up those lies about him to get attention while I was going through a difficult period in my life and trying to cope with my son’s illness. I publicly retract my statements about Conor Oberst, and sincerely apologize to him, his family, and his fans for writing such awful things about him. I realize that my actions were wrong and could undermine the claims of actual sexual assault victims and for that I also apologize. I’m truly sorry for all the pain that I caused.

[signed] Joan Elizabeth Harris, aka Joanie Faircloth