Nirvana's 'Nevermind' Baby Lawsuit Again Rejected By Court

Cover the album 'Nevermind' from Nirvana (doc. Nirvana)

JAKARTA - The drama of the lawsuit filed by Spencer Elden, a man whose photo was naked as a baby graced the cover of the iconic Nirvana album titled Nevermind, ran aground again.

The lawsuit against the legendary grunge band, which has been rolling for a long time, has been again stopped by a United States court judge.

This time, the judge's unanimous decision: Elden's baby photo on the cover of the 1991 hit album does not include child pornography.

Judge Fernando M. Olguin wrote in his ruling that either poses, focus points, backgrounds, or the overall context did not lead to allegations that the album cover featured explicit sexual behavior.

"This image, a picture that is most similar to a photo of a naked child's family taking a shower, is clearly not enough to support the findings (child's phenomenon)," said the judge's decision, quoted by Billboard, Thursday, October 2.

The judge added that nudity must be combined with other circumstances that make visual depictions sexually provocative. Olguin also highlighted the fact that Elden (who is now in his 30s) actually benefits from the album cover.

"The plaintiff, over the years, has embraced and benefited financially from appearing on the cover of the album," said Olguin. "The Plaintiff's actions regarding albums from time to time are difficult to reconcile with his claim that the album cover is child pornography and he suffered serious losses as a result."

For example, Elden often referred to himself as "Nirvana baby" and signed a memorabilia related to the Nevermind cover.

This lawsuit is Elden's third lawsuit against the surviving Nirvana personnel, Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic, along with the late Kurt Cobain estate, photographer Kirk Weddle, and a number of record labels.

In his lawsuit, Elden claims that the photo is child pornography and his legal guardian has never given formal approval for the use of the photo.